Lessons and Lies
by Storm that Twists in Spiral
Summary: Next-Generation one-shots A-Z. Some fluffy, some angsty, all different. Includes  but not limited to  Teddy/Dominique, Rose/Scorpius, Lily/Lysander, and Roxanne/Lorcan. Rated T for just a few chapters. COMPLETE!
1. Acorns

**Elsi: Welcome, one and all, to my latest story: Lessons and Lies. These will all be one-shots that are all in different 'worlds' (unless I say otherwise). **

**Trek: Here's the first one. It's Rose/Scorpius, but really more Family or Friendship than Romance. **

**Elsi: Enjoy!**

* * *

Acorns

"Coming, Scor?" Scorpius Malfoy looked up, surprised, to see Albus pulling on his gloves.

"Coming where?" replied Scorpius, sitting up. Albus grinned.

"The annual Potter-Weasley snowball fight, of course!" replied Albus cheerfully. "Guys against girls. It's a family tradition."

"Alright," agreed Scorpius. What could it hurt? He quickly pulled on the gloves that he had in his jacket and followed his best friend outside. Who knew spending Christmas with Albus would be so surprising?

"Al, there you are." Harry beckoned Albus and Scorpius closer with a wave of his hand. A bit awkwardly, Scorpius joined the circle of Potters and Weasleys. He could feel the skeptical gazes of James and Louis on him, but he did his best to ignore them. The adults began to discuss strategies that blurred in Scorpius' mind. As he tried to imagine them as Quidditch plays, Albus tapped him lightly.

"Look," he whispered. Scorpius followed his friend's gaze to where the Weasley-Potter girls were hunched together in a circle like the boys were around an oak tree. Little Lucy Weasley and Lily were up in the tree, but for what Scorpius couldn't guess. Rose, Roxanne, and Molly were on the edge of the crowd of adults, laughing over something Rose had said.

As if she sensed that Scorpius was staring, Rose turned around and met his eyes. Immediately, Scorpius' heart began to flutter. After five and a half years of wanting to meet her huge family, here he was. Albus had been kind enough to agree to take him, but the real reason for Scorpius coming wasn't him. It was Rose.

With a roll of her eyes, Rose turned back to her friends, making Scorpius sigh. Albus patted his back supportively, making Scorpius quite grateful.

"Are you two going to stand there all day?" In unison, Scorpius and Albus turned around to see Ron beckoning them to the line that their side was beginning to form. Scorpius' stomach twisted. If he ever did get Rose to go out with him (which after two years of failed attempts, was becoming hopeless), Ron Weasley would be the biggest problem he would face. At first, anyways.

Bill, Charlie, Percy, George, Ron, and Harry had crossed to the middle of the backyard, pausing to wait for the women. Scorpius glanced at Albus.

"Your family takes Christmas fun very seriously," he observed. Albus let a smirk form on his face.

"You haven't even seen half of it," he promised. It was this and this alone that made Scorpius shiver.

A moment later, Fleur, Audrey, Angelina, Hermione, and Ginny were now standing across from their husbands (plus Charlie) aggressively. The younger girls had taken their places at the edge of the backyard, as had Scorpius and the other boys. Quickly, Scorpius took a head count. Victoire, Dominique, Molly, Lucy, Roxanne, Lily, Rose…Rose…anyways, it was seven. Looking around, he only counted James, Albus, Louis, Fred, Hugo, and Teddy. And him. Perfect, when they added him in it was all even.

Now the adults were crossing back to their respective sides.

"Ready!" called Ginny from her side. At once, everyone began to scrape at the snow eagerly.

"That means you can make your first ball," Albus muttered out of the corner of his mouth. Nodding, Scorpius bent down to mash together his snowball.

"Set!" In one fluent movement, each of them popped up into a position to throw. Scorpius followed their lead after a moment – James snorted from a few spots down.

"GO!" All at once, snow was flying everywhere. Scorpius launched his snowball as hard as he could towards Roxanne and ducked down to make another. As yells of fury filled the air, Scorpius could feel the blood in his veins pick up. This was just how he felt during a Quidditch game!

As he fired another snowball at Molly with all that he had in him, he felt something hard connect with his side. Gasping in sudden pain, Scorpius looked around to see that Dominique had hit him hard. From the fresh snow fell three little acorns.

"They're throwing acorns!" he called out, scooping them up and dodging Lily's snowball.

"That's a filthy trick!" hissed Hugo suddenly, appearing with two snowballs in his hands. He tossed one to Scorpius. "Let's send them back at them." Scorpius blinked a few times, fumbling to catch the snowball. Were they actually beginning to accept him being there?

A hard snowball from Roxanne brought Scorpius back to life, and he piled the acorns from the two balls into the snowball that Hugo had just handed him, firing it back at the redhead with everything he had. Her squeal of surprise told him that he had hit his target.

As the day became warmer, the battle raged on. Acorns and snow flew around him, and Scorpius did his best to dodge. He only saw Albus a few times, but everyone else seemed to respect and look to him as a normal member of this fight. Even James resisted the urge to send him sprawling into the snow.

He was battling alongside Fred and his father, George, when suddenly, he caught sight of Rose. She was perched on the lowest branches of the tree with Hermione, holding a bucket of acorns.

"Look!" cried Scorpius. Fred's head swiveled around.

"Go for it, Scorpius!" he called, throwing a snowball at Lily. As Scorpius bent down to prepare a huge snowball to take out the bucket of acorns, he realized with a pang of happiness that they hadn't called him Malfoy. They were actually starting to accept him!

He snuck away from the two Weasleys and towards the back of the tree, hoping not to be seen by Rose or her mother. As soon as he got in sight of the branch and took aim, he realized something: Rose was missing.

"Thought you could fool us, huh, Malfoy?" Scorpius spun around to see Rose, and his breath caught in his throat. With bushy red hair flowing out behind her, she shone in the white-and-brown snow. She tossed a snowball in her hand with a crunch. Showing her that he also had a snowball, Scorpius took a step back. Smirking, Rose approached him.

_Throw it at her!_ he screamed silently. But how could he possibly throw this snowball at the girl he had loved since Albus introduced him to her in first year? The Gryffindor could sense his weakness, and she continued to chase him backwards. At last, Scorpius felt the wood of the oak tree behind him, but Rose still came closer.

"If I get out of this alive, will you go out with me?" he asked weakly, hoping that she would pity his helplessness and not peg him into oblivion.

"Depends," Rose replied, taking a few more paces forward. Scorpius could now see her breath in the air in front of him. His heart fluttered: he could reach out and touch her now if he wanted to. Rose still bounced the snowball lightly in her hand.

At this reminder, Scorpius curled around the tree, hoping to escape her. And suddenly, Rose pounced, pushing him to the ground.

"What the-?" Before he could finish his sentence, Rose was kissing him fiercely. Scorpius' shock nearly stopped him from responding, but he could just barely kiss her in return. She pushed herself up, winked, and then bounded swiftly away.

Scorpius just lay there with his eyes closed for a moment, amazed at what had just happened. How he had dreamed of this moment every time he saw her in the hallways with her cousins. Maybe all it took was having him as a house-mate for a few weeks.

This happy thought in his mind, Scorpius opened his eyes to see that he was right under the branch Hermione was sitting on. She was staring down at him, and his stomach tensed. Not because he feared that she was about to hex him for kissing her daughter, but because she was now tipping the bucket of acorns right above him.

He barely had time to yell before a fierce downpour of acorns knocked the little breath he had left out of his body. When he emerged from the shock (and slight pain), he noticed that the entire Potter-Weasley clan was gathered around him, laughing their heads up. Albus crossed over to him and pulled him up.

"What the bloody hell was that?" shouted Scorpius, glaring around at them.

"That," laughed Albus, "was the ritual we _all_ went through on our first family snowball fight. In a way, you are officially part of the family." A warm feeling spread through Scorpius as he looked at them all. Even James and Louis, who had been absolutely nasty to him at school, were beaming. Struck with sudden courage, Scorpius stalked up to Rose.

"I take that as a yes?" he questioned her. The redhead chuckled.

"No way, Scorpius Malfoy. You're part of the family now, and I don't date my family."

* * *

**Elsi: Well? Did you like it? I wasn't completely fond of it. But what did YOU think?**

**Trek: The next one will be Lily/Lysander, sub-category being...**

**Elsi: Friendship? I don't really know. ANYWAYS! Please please pretty please review. I want to know if this is ridiculous or not. **

**Trek: Yeah, what she said.**


	2. Beater

**Elsi: Lily/Lysander, as promised.**

**Trek: It's called Beater, and it's about...Quidditch.**

**Elsi: Not really, but okay. So, enjoy!**

* * *

Beater

Lily propped her elbows on the edge of the Quidditch stands as she watched Gryffindor and Slytherin play for the cup…for the fifth year in a row. She knew she should probably be studying for her O.W.L.'s, but Rose had begged her and Albus to come and watch her 'pummel Scorpius to a pulp like I did last year'. But there were only so many times that Lily found Rose and her boyfriend racing around the other players in pursuit of the Snitch entertaining.

Beside her, Albus and Louis seemed to agree. As James' best friend, he should have been watching the game instead of studying furiously for his N.E.W.T.'s, but he (or maybe it was his mother) cared more about grades than James, so here he was. Albus was watching the game, but his expression was so glassy that Lily could guess that he was bored.

She let her gaze drift around the Quidditch pitch. Hugo had the Quaffle, but that didn't interest her. Rose and Scorpius were circling the pitch, but she didn't care about that either. Her eyes were now drawn to the Gryffindor Beater, Lysander Scamander…one of her best friends. Or…was he? She flashed back to before the game, when she had gone to wish him, Rose, James, and Hugo good luck.

_"Hey, guys," James said as Lily, Albus, and Louis came in to wish them luck. As Captain of the team, he and he alone had the liberty to invite us in. _

_"You made it!" cried Rose, jumping up from where she and Hugo were discussing the victory party Fred and Roxanne were going to pull off. Lily smiled as her cousin hurried over to them._

_"Good luck, Rosie," Lily said, giving her a quick hug. _

_"Thanks," Rose answered. _

_"Good luck, Hugo!" she called to her other cousin. Hugo just nodded, his nerves apparently getting to him. She turned back to Rose. "You haven't seen Lysander, have you?"_

_"He usually goes to the dressing room while we're waiting to start," Rose told her. Lily thanked her and pushed her way through the Quidditch room and towards the guys' dressing room. Taking a deep breath, she knocked on the door. _

_"Lysander?" she called out. _

_'Lily?" was the only reply. "Come in." Sighing, Lily pushed open the door. Lysander was standing against the wall, staring at where she had just come in. And all Lily could think about was how good he looked in that equipment._

_She had never seen him up close in his uniform, because he always changed right after games, no matter how big the party was. And since it was his first year on the team, she had never had to come in and wish him luck._

_"Good luck in the game, Ly," she managed._

_"Thanks." Silence. Lily stared at her best guy friend in shock. With the heavy equipment fitting perfectly around his muscles, he looked…well, like a god. Lysander took a couple steps towards her. "Do you think we'll win?"_

_"Of course," Lily told him. "Slytherin has Scorpius; the rest of the team are just big."_

_"Which means they hit harder bludgers," pointed out Lysander. Realizing for the first time that Slytherin were actually going to hurt him if they hit him, Lily threw her arms around him. Lysander hugged her back._

_"Don't get hurt, okay? I've heard my dad's old stories," whispered Lily. Lysander sighed and rubbed her back gently. _

_"I won't, Lils. I've got my big stick, remember?" Lily laughed, but it was a bitter laugh. Lysander drew her back and took her face in his hands, brushing her hair back. "I promise I won't get hurt." Lily gazed into his blue eyes and felt herself being calmed just by his hands on her skin and in her hair._

_Suddenly, Lysander pressed his lips to hers for a fraction of a second, just long enough for Lily to be sure it happened. And then he backed away from her._

_"Sorry," he whispered, and he left the room._

Lily touched her lips absent-mindedly, reliving the memory. She looked back at Lysander, who was now hovering above the moving blob of chasers. The sun shone behind him, illuminating his elegant muscles. Again, Lily was disturbed about how attractive he was in his uniform.

Suddenly, a blue-black bludger came out of nowhere. Lily gasped, rising as it spiraled sickly towards Lysander.

"LYSANDER!" she screamed, making Albus and Louis jump to life beside her. He barely had time to look before the bludger slammed into him, causing him to gasp in pain and spin out of control towards the ground. Lily nearly fell out of the stands leaning over the rail to watch as one of the professors carried him away.

"Lily, he'll be fine." Lily could barely hear Albus' voice; she could barely feel his hand gripping her shoulder. Her eyes were glued to Lysander's limp form traveling farther and farther away from her. Wrenching herself free of her brother's grasp, Lily rushed through the stands. She could hear Albus and Louis following her, but she didn't care.

She ran and ran, but the magical stretcher floated along faster. After a few minutes, Lily found herself gasping for breath.

"Lily!" cried Louis, and Lily slowed to a stop, staring hopelessly after the stretcher. Her brother and Louis caught up after a moment. "He'll be fine."

"He promised," Lily whispered blankly. "He promised he wouldn't get hurt."

"It was just a bludger," soothed Albus. "Lysander will be fine." Gently, he wheeled her around. "We'll visit him after the game."

And so they did, right after Rose's hand closed over the Snitch. Bolting from her seat, Lily took off towards the castle, praying that Lysander would be awake. Albus followed her, but Louis hung around to give the team their wishes.

Lily burst into the hospital wing, searching the room for her best friend. He was lying limply in the farthest bed, still in his uniform. She was at his bedside in a moment, gazing down at his pale face. Albus sat down on the opposite side of the bed, his gaze flickering between Lysander and Lily.

After a few very painful moments, Lysander let out a small cough and awoke. Lily's breath caught in her throat as he opened his blue eyes.

"Lils?" he mumbled. "That you?"

"How are you, Ly?" Lily whispered, relief spreading through her.

"I hurt." Lily let out a chuckle. "What happened?"

"That Slytherin beater, Jones, hit a bludger right into you," Albus explained. "They carried you off the field right away. You fell a long way."

"Are you okay?" Lily demanded. Lysander slowly propped himself up.

"Yeah," he answered weakly. "At least…I am now."

"What?" Lily replied.

"Remember how I said I was sorry, before the game?" murmured Lysander, gazing up at Lily. After a quick flashback, Lily nodded. "I wasn't." Her breath caught in her throat for a moment, and she stared at him. What did she think of what he was saying to her? Below her was her best friend since…forever. How could she think of him as anything more? But then she thought of Rose's parents, and smiled. It was how they started out…right?

It occurred to Lily that Lysander was still staring up at her, expecting some response. Lily bent down to touch her lips to his forehead gently.

"Neither was I," she promised. And the glow on Lysander's face let her know that she was speaking from her heart.

* * *

**Elsi: I feel satisfied with this one. Do you guys like it?**

**Trek: In other words, Elsi wants you to review.**

**Elsi: Yeah, I do. Want to tell them what C is?**

**Trek: It's Teddy/Victoire. **

**Elsi: I know, I know. I don't really like the pairing. But it made me happy to write it. So, go ahead and read it!**


	3. Chocolate

**Elsi: This one is reeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeally short. It's only about six hundred words. I don't do Teddy/Victoire too tremendously well. **

**Trek: It's called Chocolate. Yup. I'd say the second category is...humor?**

**Elsi: Yeah, I guess. This one makes me happy inside. I hope it makes you happy, too.**

* * *

Chocolate

The first time Teddy had given her chocolate was on her first visit to Hogsmeade. As she was his only "cousin" in Hogwarts at the time, it only seemed proper to take her there himself. She was young, and dare he say it, a bit naïve back then. To her, getting chocolate and being taken to Hogsmeade by her handsome family friend was the most romantic thing ever.

The rest of the school knew he was taking her, too. Teddy heard the rumors fly around the school (Teddy's taking Victoire Weasley to Hogsmeade. A third year!) and walked on by without caring. He knew there was nothing going on between him and his "cousin", although he did admit that she was beautiful. Even at age thirteen, her strawberry blonde hair and curved figure made even sixth or seventh years glance her way. Silently, Teddy thanked everything he knew to pray to for this excuse for taking her.

She would be waiting for him by the front entrance, giving Teddy enough time to sneak into the kitchen to prepare a box of chocolates for her. When he presented them to her, her face lit up with a beautiful glow and she took them cheerfully. Her little friends, going all by themselves, were overcome with jealousy. Teddy let Victoire introduce him to each one of them, and then they were on their way.

It was a fine day for a visit to the village. Teddy first took his "cousin" to Honeydukes, where she led him on and on past shelves of goodies until finally settling on something; he had been following with a few of his favorite snacks to nibble on while she decided. Next, they traveled along to Zonko's, where Victoire decided she'd be better off without anything. After walking out of the store with only Teddy's purchases, he led her down the path to the Shrieking Shack, where Victoire cowered in terror as he told her all the spooky stories about the place.

The final stop on their trip was to the Three Broomsticks. At first, Teddy was cautious about giving her butterbeer, but he knew that she would make his life miserable if he didn't give any to her. _Teddy,_ she had asked, _is this our first date?_ Surprised, Teddy didn't answer right away. But the look in her blue eyes made him smile. _Sure, Victoire,_ he answered. _Sure it is._

As they headed back up towards the castle to settle down in the common room by the fire, Victoire stopped him. _Thank you for the chocolate, Teddy,_ she said to him. _And the wonderful first date._ And without warning, she leaned up and kissed him swiftly on the lips. Teddy, feeling suddenly light-headed, nodded. _No problem, Vic,_ he mumbled.

That was the day he had fallen in love with her. That was the day he had decided to give her chocolate in order to please her.

At that moment, six years later, he wished he hadn't.

"Chocolate? CHOCOLATE! Teddy Remus Lupin, you know I'm on a diet!"

"I…I…"

"You're trying to make me fat, aren't you? You're trying to find an excuse to break up with me!"

"No, Vi-."

"I don't want to hear it! I don't want to hear it. Just…get out."

And she slammed the door in his face, leaving him gaping after her with a box of chocolate in his hand.

* * *

**Elsi: Well? Well? Did you like it? Or was it weird?**

**Trek: Before you move on, I'm gonna tell you that the next one will be Teddy/Dominique. And it's not as fluffy as this one...**

**Elsi: BUT it IS in the same world! Yay!**

**Trek: Yeah. So, read on and review, please.**


	4. Diamonds

**Elsi: 'Ello, ello! _Fancy_ seeing you here! **pauses****

**Trek: What?**

**Elsi: It was a terrible and barely relevant pun. See, cuz the title is Diamonds and diamonds are...never mind.**

**Trek: Riiiight. So, I was telling-**

**Elsi: nagging**

**Trek: Elsi to go to bed when she saw that she had only posted the first three parts of Lessons and Lies when she has four written! So, she had to publish it. Instead of sleeping. **glares****

**Elsi: Give it a rest. I'm not eight, you know.**

**Trek: You act like it sometimes...**

**Elsi: SMITE! SMITE! RAWR! Actually, I do... **smites anyways****

* * *

Diamonds

Dominique knew it was Teddy before she answered the door. Who else would come knocking at this time of night? She jumped from her place on the couch and ran to the door, opening it to reveal her best friend. Her mouth dropped.

Teddy's hair was navy, a sign that he was depressed. He slumped into Dominique's flat and collapsed on the couch, not even looking at her. Dominique stared at him for a moment, and then she went to sit next to him.

"What did she do to you?" she asked, gently propping him up. Teddy turned to look at her, his eyes flashing between chocolate brown and black. Dominique felt a shiver run through her. "I thought you were going to propose to her tonight."

"I did," croaked Teddy, almost inaudible over the Muggle television set in front of them. Dominique stared at him, putting a hand to her mouth.

"She rejected you?" she whispered. With a gulp, Teddy nodded. "Oh, Teddy." Dominique flung her arms around him, breathing in his smell of wine and cologne. "I'm so sorry."

"She said that…it had to be diamonds…" A flash of fury raged through Dominique, but she only sat back, shocked.

"But that ring was beautiful!" she exclaimed. "I thought she'd love it! I'm so sorry!"

"S'alright," whispered Teddy. His eyes focused on her, and he let out a shaky sigh. "I guess you can have it then." Without waiting for her to answer, Teddy flung the tiny red box at Dominique, whose heart gave a tremble.

Very slowly, she pushed open the scarlet velvet case, only to be reminded of her anger. The ring was simple yet beautiful, silver with tiny chunks of emerald around it. How could her stupid sister…ugggh…

"Oh, Teddy," she repeated. "How could anyone turn this down?" The man shrugged. "I'm going to give Victoire a-." Her sentence was cut short as Teddy's head flopped into her lap. Sighing, Dominique let her anger vanish. She gently ran her hands through his navy hair, hoping to calm him.

If it was possible, Teddy's hair turned a slightly darker shade of blue. Soon, he was crying, letting all his feelings of anger, hurt, pain, and sorrow out. Dominique tried to hush him with gentle words.

"It's alright, Teddy," she breathed, stroking his hair. "I'm here. I'll always be here."

How true the words were, she thought. _I'll always be here._ Victoire always got her way with things, leaving Dominique standing in the dust. She got the looks; she got the brains; she got the job…she got the man. Yes, Victoire had the only man her sister wanted in a firm grip, leaving Dominique to hope and dream. Even after she had rejected the greatest thing Teddy had to offer, she had him wrapped around her finger. Dominique could only sit here and watch him as he loved her older sister, never to love her.

Slowly but surely, Teddy drifted off to a miserable sleep on Dominique's lap. She never stopped murmuring to him, stroking his hair and thinking to herself. It was only when his hair turned a soft shade of orange that she stopped, slipping out from underneath him and letting him sleep on the couch.

Dominique looked down at the ring in her hand, then back at Teddy. She gently pushed it onto her ring finger.

"Dominique Lupin," she whispered. "Mrs. Teddy Remus Lupin." It had a beautiful ring to it. She gazed back at Teddy, who now had emerald hair.

"Victoire…" he whimpered in his sleep. And it was that single word that caused tears to form in Dominique's eyes. She slipped the ring from her finger and instead put it on her pinky. She would never be Mrs. Teddy Remus Lupin. He was so miserable that he came to her…but only as a friend.

And all because Victoire had demanded diamonds. Fury bubbled inside of Dominique at the thought. She looked again at the man she loved.

"I would never demand diamonds," she hissed in a whisper. "She doesn't get you. Not like _I_ do." And with that last thought, Dominique stormed to her bedroom, where she cried herself to sleep.

* * *

**Elsi: Egg? Or was that actually decent?**

**Trek: HA! I get it! Egg as in...**

**Elsi: What?**

**Trek: Oh...you weren't making a pun?**

**Elsi: No. But THANKS for telling them what the next word is!**

**Trek: YOU said it.**

**Elsi: Egg is my frustration word! Don't ask...it's a long story. ANYWAYS, that's beside the point. The point is, did you like it? What's that? I can't hear you through the computer screen. You'll have to review instead. Oh well. Shame. **

**Trek: If you don't Victoire will come pelt chocolate boxes at your head!**

**Elsi: Remember? I don't own Harry Potter. I can't do that. **


	5. Eggs

**Elsi: This is Elsi here, welcoming you to the fifth chapter of Lessons and Lies. It's called Eggs. As you probably guessed, thanks to someone.**

**Trek: Sorry! I thought it was a pun.**

**Elsi: **rolls eyes** So, I realized that I haven't done disclaimers in forever. So, Trek?**

**Trek: Elsi doesn't own Harry Potter. This would probably happen if she did.**

**Elsi: Oh, and before you read, this one takes place in the same world as Acorns. It may not be important, but it is important in the next one.**

* * *

Eggs

Apart from the Ravenclaw common room, Lorcan's favorite place in the world was the Hogwarts kitchen. So many wonderful smells and foods; ones that he could indulge in all day. Whenever he had a headache from a particularly hard homework assignment, he would sneak down to the kitchen. By now, the house-elves let him cook in a small corner of the kitchen.

So, after his first A in sixth year, Lorcan fled to his sanctuary.

"Is something wrong, Master Lorcan?" It was Bitsy, the house-elf who had first presented the idea of giving Lorcan his own corner of the kitchen.

"I just got an "Acceptable" on my History of Magic report."

"Well, that is very good, Master Lorcan!" cried another house-elf, Gribby. Lorcan shook his head sadly.

"It's the only grade less than an "Exceeds Expectations" that I've ever gotten," he explained. "I feel terrible about it."

"You are a very good student, Master Lorcan," Bitsy said, his tennis-ball eyes wide. Lorcan gave them a bitter smile and turned to the frying pan.

He had learned to cook the Muggle way a long time ago, from the help of his dad. He often cooked dinner with his family over Christmas and summer break and was praised by his mother. Lysander didn't see cooking as an essential skill, and Lorcan really didn't care. His brother, three years his junior, didn't use the idea of making food as a stress relief, and that was alright.

Lorcan was humming to himself as he went to get the eggs out of the Hogwarts "fridge". An omelet would be perfect, and what was an omelet without eggs? The fridge, more like an entire room, was full with boxes and bins of various things. Crossing to where the eggs were, he gasped. Where were the eggs? As his panic increased, Lorcan started to search throughout the fridge, but he could not find the key ingredient to his favorite dish.

"Looking for these?" Lorcan spun around to see Roxanne Weasley, two cartons of eggs at her feet and another in her hand. The pink carton was propped open, revealing eleven perfect white eggs. The twelfth, he found, was being tossed up and down in her hand.

"Yes, I am," Lorcan said slowly, having no idea what the mischievous redhead wanted. She was in Lysander's year; one of his friends. "May I have them, Roxa- WOAH!" Lorcan dived to the side as Roxanne hurled an egg at his head. He stood up, looking behind him at the yolk dripping off the shelf. "What was that for?"

"No reason," replied Roxanne, smiling demonically. Just from knowing Fred, who caused terror in the seventh year, Lorcan knew that he was in trouble.

Without hesitation, Roxanne flung another egg at him, causing Lorcan to dive to the side and hear a splat as the egg hit the wall. The next one hit him in the head, letting the sticky yellow yolk leak into his blonde hair. Lorcan pulled himself up, shaking his head. Roxanne was laughing hard at the sight of eggshell in his hair, so she was unsuspecting the carton of eggs to be whisked out of her hands.

As Lorcan's silent spell worked and he caught the carton of eggs, he met Roxanne's eyes. As if agreeing to some kind of silent terms, she bent down and picked up another carton. And though he was a prefect and probably Head Boy next year, Lorcan's heart was pounding with the thought of throwing an egg at Roxanne Weasley.

From there out, it was an all out war. Eggs flew from all directions, landing against walls, dripping through shelves, landing against Roxanne's pale blue sweater with a golden R on it, making Lorcan's blonde hair even yellower. Lorcan couldn't remember the last time he had let go like this, not even caring about what was going on around him.

At last, Lorcan reached for another egg and found there were none left. Roxanne did the same, and for a moment both the third year trouble-maker and the sixth year prefect looked around the kitchen looking for the same thing. Upon deciding that there were none, Lorcan began to examine the room.

"Crap," Roxanne said. Lorcan, about to say a stronger word, nodded in agreement. For dripping throughout the shelves and into the boxes of food – the food that they would be eating, no less – was egg yolk. "Well, I think this prank turned into more fun than I thought it would." The redhead turned to march away, surprising Lorcan.

"That's it?" he called after her. Roxanne turned around, staring at him. It was then that Lorcan got a firm look at her. Her skin was like caramel; her eyes dark and deep; her hair a deep red, almost auburn. "We…we have to clean up our mess."

"And what's the fun in that?" cried Roxanne.

"It's not about fun, it's -." Then Lorcan stopped. Because as he realized what they had been doing, he realized that there it was just for fun. He had come to the kitchens to relax and, well, have fun as he cooked. She had come to pull a prank on the uptight Ravenclaw prefect. And now, with their Hogwarts robes dripping with egg yolk, Lorcan realized that both of them had made an imprint on the other. Roxanne had taught him that there was more to life at Hogwarts than just getting good grades and become a great wizard. It was about living in the moment, just doing things for the fun of it.

After several more moments of staring at each other, Lorcan smiled. Suddenly, both of them were laughing, thinking about what they had done, and how much fun it had been.

"Master Lorcan? Are you finding everything you need?" Lorcan and Roxanne froze as Bitsy and Gribby and about three other house-elves pushed open the door.

"What now?" whispered Lorcan as the looks of shock popped onto their faces. Roxanne laughed.

"Run!" she cried, and took of running as if all of Slytherin house was after her. And with a lighter heart and without a single word of apology, Lorcan sped after her, soon catching up to her. Though he knew that the both of them would receive detention, it didn't matter. They did it together, and they had fun.

And so, every time Lorcan Scamander made an omelet, he thought of the day he fell heads-over-heels for Roxanne Weasley.

* * *

**Elsi: I really like how this turned out. So, a third year and a sixth year. What's the story? You'll see...in a long time.**

**Trek: It would be really nice if this story got some reviews. Can that be arranged?**

**Elsi: The next one is set in the same universe. It's a Lysander/Molly fic. and ROXANNE ROX in it. Ha ha.**

**Trek: Right. So...see you there?**


	6. Feathers

**Elsi: This is a pretty short one. It's not as short as Chocolate, though. **

**Trek: In this, Molly is a shallow git.**

**Elsi: And Roxanne rox my sox off. That was so sixth grade. **

**Trek: Yup it kind of was. Elsi doesn't own Harry Potter. That's J.K. Rowling, the luckiest person in the world.**

* * *

Feathers

Molly Weasley loved a lot of things. She loved her workaholic father and her sweet Muggle mother. She loved her innocent little sister, Lucy. She loved her best friends (and cousins): Rose and Roxanne. She loved snowball fights with the family, and sitting by the lake with Rose and Roxy, and studying in the Gryffindor common room with the rest of the fourth years. She loved teasing James and Louis about how they barely passed their O.W.L's, and helping Lucy with her first year homework, and scaring Lily and Hugo about what fourth-year life is like, and finding ways to include Albus even though he was in Slytherin – even if this included his best friend, Scorpius Malfoy, as well.

But what Molly Weasley hated more than anything in the world was things that were out of order, or messy, or otherwise dirty. She didn't have a cat because they left fur everywhere. She didn't have a toad because they were "slimy and gross". She didn't have an owl because they shed their feathers all over your stuff.

So, when Lysander Scamander, Molly's boyfriend of two weeks, presented her with a hand-made crown made completely of owl feathers that he had found in the Owlery and tiny stones to spell out her name, Molly became completely enraged. She yelled at him for a full five minutes before he finally had enough sense to scramble backwards out of the common room and realize that they were done.

Molly stormed upstairs and threw the crown to the other side of the room before going to wash her hands. How dare he give her such a present! She sat on her bed for ten minutes, thinking about how angry she was, before something disrupted her anger.

"Something wrong, Molly?" asked Roxanne, stepping into the dormitory. Molly rolled her eyes.

"You will _not_ guess what Lysander got me for a two-week anniversary present," she told her friend.

"According to Lorcan, he gave you a crown," Roxanne answered. "What's wrong with that?"

"Yeah, he gave me a crown," Molly spat. "Made of _owl feathers._"

"That's pretty impressive, Mols," Roxanne told her sternly. Molly glared at her friend.

"What do you mean?" she snapped. "It's disgusting!" Roxanne sighed.

"Just the other day, Lorcan made me an omelet with zucchini and cauliflower," she started.

"What did you do?" gasped Molly, knowing that the redhead hated both zucchini and cauliflower. Roxanne shrugged.

"I ate it," she replied. Confusion gripped Molly.

"But don't you hate that stuff?" Roxanne's dark brown eyes smiled at her.

"Yeah," Roxanne said. "But Lorcan made it just for me. It was special." Molly glanced over to where the feather crown sat on the floor. As if reading her mind, Roxanne crossed over to it and picked it up, bringing it back to the bed.

"Look," Roxanne continued. "There are only black and white feathers in this. And the pebbles are all light grey." Molly leaned over her friend's shoulder to see that she was right. "That means he was being very precise." Smiling, Roxanne handed Molly the crown.

It was then that she noticed the small folded note wedged in between two feathers. Molly carefully opened the note and read it.

_Molly,_

_I hope you like this. I know you don't really like things that are messy and unsanitary, but this was what I had. I think the black and white will go beautifully with your hair, and the grey of the stones will bring out your eyes. I'm really glad to be your boyfriend._

_With love,_

_Lysander_

"Oh," whispered Molly. "Oh, Roxy, look." As Roxanne read the note, Molly took her crown to the nearest mirror and slowly slipped it on. She gasped. The black and white mixed perfectly with her flaming red hair, and the rocks spelling out Molly shone through – the same color of her eyes. It didn't even look like she was wearing a crown made of feathers and rocks anymore.

"Molly, it's beautiful," Roxanne told her. "Lysander was right."

"Yes, he was," murmured Molly. "I was wrong to be so angry with him." Roxanne sighed in agreement. Suddenly, an idea took hold of her. She narrowed her grey eyes and marched out the door.

"Where are you going?" Roxanne called.

"To dinner. Hopefully, Lysander will be there," replied Molly firmly. Roxanne watched her go, a smile on her face.

"My work here is done," she said to herself, and followed her friend down to the Great Hall.

* * *

**Elsi: Well? Was that okay? Or was that absolutely stupid? **

**Trek: I think you should review and tell her.**

**Elsi: Right. Oh, and if you're wondering why the heck Lorcan and Roxanne seem together, remember that this is in the same universe as Eggs, set about a year later. I have a plan later on to include another one-shot on how they actually get together. The next one, though is a Lucy/Lorcan, and is definitely not in the same world. Just a point.**

**Trek: If I didn't know better, I'd say you're fond of Roxanne/Lorcan.**

**Elsi: Well, I am. Ha. Read and Review!**


	7. Grades

**Elsi: 'Ello. Sorry about not having this up yesterday (Sunday). I was reading MOCKINGJAY! Which was really sad by the way, because my two fav characters died.**

**Trek: Anyways...this is the next chapter of Lessons and Lies. It's Lucy/Lorcan. Yup.**

**Elsi: I kind of like this one. Except of the impractical situations...**

**Trek: Elsi no own HP. Cool?**

* * *

Grades

Lucy Weasley was her father's daughter, through and through. From her first day of Hogwarts, she had sought to be the best in her year – and she was. Her papers were always exactly the right length; her potions were perfect; her notes were neat and organized; her spells were flawless. Some people even called her the New and Improved version of Percy Weasley.

So it made perfect sense when, in fourth year, Lucy started dating Lorcan Scamander. The two had been studying together since second year, sitting in the Ravenclaw Common Room and copying their notes. Since Lorcan was right behind Lucy grade-wise, no one quite understood how they were companions and not rivals.

But when they started dating, this thought went out the window. It was rare to see one without the other, and they stayed within calling distance of the other even during free periods. Neither of them were in any clubs except for their unofficial one, what their families called the "Siamese Twin Club". Yes, for the entire year, the two of them were inseparable.

It was fifth year – Valentine's Day. Lorcan was serving his first detention ever (talking out of turn), so Lucy was left alone in the Ravenclaw Common Room to do her studying.

As it was nearly eleven, and it was a Tuesday, there were only two people in the common room, two seventh years who had drank too much butterbeer at the Valentine's Day feast and had been snogging in a deserted classroom since the feast ended. Unfortunately, upon returning to the Common Room, their activities had restarted. And, to Lucy, at least, it was pretty distracting to have two people groping at each other and moaning every so often nearby.

It was even more distracting if one of them was your older sister.

"When transfiguring a button into a beetle, it is helpful to remember what three cues?" murmured Lucy aloud, trying to get back to the notes she was making for her O.W.L's. Scrawling out the answer, she tried not to look over at Molly and her boyfriend. But she couldn't ignore the noise.

As she wrote carefully about vanishing spells, Lucy couldn't help but think that in their entire time of dating, Lucy and Lorcan had never kissed. Their relationship was built off of their studying.

_No…_ realized Lucy. _We got together because of grades. Grades! Of all things…_ Lucy lay her quill down, looking over at her sister. When did they start dating? _Probably during the feast,_ she reflected. _And now they're basically sucking each other's tongues out. Knowing Molly, they already shagged in that classroom._ Lucy closed the nearest textbook and rolled up her parchment, depositing her things in her bag. She could continue this tomorrow – there'd be no way she'd get anything done.

Just then, Lorcan pushed his way into the Common Room. His eyes first settled on Molly and her boyfriend, but he shook his head, then finding Lucy.

"Hi," he greeted her. "Get anything done?"

"Not since my sister showed up," answered Lucy with a sigh. The two of them glanced towards the couch.

"Is he even in Ravenclaw?" asked Lorcan, indicating to the black and yellow scarf the boy had thrown on the ground.

"Apparently not," sighed Lucy. She paused, thinking.

"Lorcan," Lucy went on, "are there more important things in life than grades?"

"Do you mean you're sick of being at the top of our year?" asked Lorcan incredulously.

"No!" cried Lucy. "I mean…for us. Our main focus is grades. Is that how things are supposed to be?"

"Well, it's important to have good grades," pointed out Lorcan. "Then you can use them later in life. You get your O.W.L's, and your N.E.W.T's, and then-." Unable to help herself anymore, Lucy threw her arms around him, planting her lips fiercely on his. Taken completely by surprised, Lorcan staggered backwards. It wasn't a passionate kiss like the one(s) Molly was currently giving, but it was still nice.

After a good twenty seconds, Lucy and Lorcan spread apart, gazing at each other. Lucy, her arms still tight around his neck, examined every little thing about him: the chiseled chin, the flushed cheeks, the sloping nose, the pale cerulean eyes, even the sandy blonde bangs draping into his eyes.

A long moment passed where the only sounds were the crackling of the fire and a gasp as Molly and her boyfriend finally stopped making out on the couch. And then, Lorcan broke the silence, dipping his head but not breaking their gaze.

"No," he whispered firmly. "That's not how things are supposed to be."

"Then why are we still doing this?" asked Lucy. Lorcan, still holding her hips, smiled.

"Because that's not how things are," he murmured. "I'm dating you for you, Luce. Not your grades."

"Alright, then," said Lucy. "Goodnight, Lorcan." She pushed him away, grabbed her bag from where she had deposited it, and went upstairs.

"No goodnight kiss?" called Lorcan quietly. Lucy laughed.

"You already got it," she replied, and snuck back into her dorm with a smile. For the first night in her life, Lucy had a real boyfriend. And strangely, it took Molly making out with hers for three hours straight to get her one.

* * *

**Elsi: Hmm...three-hour make out session?**

**Trek: You did the writing.**

**Elsi: Whatevsies. So, I'll have the next chapter up soon. I've planned it all out. "I" may be difficult, though...but after I get through it, I've got "J" down, and I'm down to two options for "K" on how to play it. Cool to you guys?**

**Trek: You know what would be cool to us?**

**Elsi: If you reviewed! It makes me sad that this story has no reviews. :(**

**Trek: Review please?**


	8. Heaven

**Elsi: Hey. Sorry this is late...but it's Labor Day. Happy Labor Day! Heh heh.**

**Trek: Have this Teddy/Lily one-shot as a present. **

**Elsi: Oh, as a warning: this is in no way religious-ist. You know, like racist, but...whatever. I just know Christianity better than any other religion. I don't even know if there's any religion in Harry Potter. Which I DON'T OWN. Yup.**

* * *

Heaven

Being an atheist, Teddy didn't really know what was right and what was wrong. He'd always been an atheist, so doing things that were definitely wrong wouldn't get him any farther away from where he wanted to go, because he didn't want to go anywhere. The only consequences of lying and cheating and doing wrong were those that were dished out from the people that found out. And if no one found out, well, that was okay.

Lily, on the other hand, was a highly religious young woman. She'd been highly religious all her life, and stayed away from everything that was considered wrong. Never had she lied to keep herself out of trouble, or stolen something from someone else. All she wanted was to go to Heaven when she died, to live an endless life where there was nothing but happiness and forgiveness.

The only other thing Lily wanted was Teddy. And, since it was wrong to cheat on a husband or wife, she couldn't have him. Why did Teddy have to marry Victoire? They didn't even have a pretty little ceremony: they'd both been drunk, they'd ran off to some Muggle chapel; they were married the next morning.

_But they were still married._ As Lily gazed down at Teddy's sleeping form in the bed beside her, she felt a pang of guilt, and rightfully so. She had broken a crucial. She had slept with a man that was not her husband. A _married_ man that was not her husband, no less. Great.

Lily closed her eyes for a moment, remembering the wonderful night they had shared. It would stay in her mind forever: the color of his hair, the fierce passion of his kiss, the loving gentleness of his touch. She bit her lip. _No,_ she thought._ It was wrong._

Victoire had been out. She was at Dominique's, enjoying her bachelorette party, promising that she would stay the night with her sister. Lily's guilt grew. She should have been there, too, not here with Teddy. Not in Victoire's spot in his bed, while Victoire herself congratulated her sister on getting married.

It was then that it hit Lily. _I'm not going to Heaven,_ she realized. _I've messed up. I'm not going to Heaven. _Kicking out of the bed, Lily found her pile of clothes on the floor and pulled then on. Tears filled her eyes as she wondered how she would ever go on after this.

"Lils?" Lily froze, her hand on the doorknob. "Is that you?" Slowly, Lily turned on the spot to face Teddy. His messed up hair, its usual turquoise, caught her eye.

"Yeah," she whispered, thought she wasn't sure why she didn't get the heck out of there. Oh, yeah, because she still loved him.

"Where are you going?"

"I've got to get ready for the wedding," answered Lily quietly. Teddy stared at her for a long time.

"It is you," he said. "I wasn't sure." Lily blinked, stung. Was she not special or something? How many girls had he shagged before her?

"What do you mean?" breathed Lily. Teddy chuckled lightly.

"You're good," he replied. Lily's felt the heat rise to her face. "It's weird…but I like it. No…I love it. I love _you_."

"No, you don't," sighed Lily. "You love Victoire. You married her."

"Lily." Teddy stared at her in exasperation. "We were drunk and staggering. Both of us."

"But you stayed with her…" Teddy shrugged. "And plus…you were drunk last night." Lily turned back to open the door, ready to run out and avoid him and this conversation altogether. She would go to Dominique's wedding. She would pray until she was sure that she would go to Heaven. She would forget about Teddy.

"No I wasn't."

Lily stopped.

"Wh…what?" she gasped, whipping around so fast that her auburn hair flapped around her face, leaving her scrambling to smooth it down. Teddy beckoned for her to sit next to him, and she reluctantly did, glad that the sheets were covering him. She didn't want to be reminded of her sin.

"I wasn't drunk, Lily. I was drunk when I married Victoire. We're filing a divorce as soon as we can, I swear."

"Really?" The word seemed childish when Lily said it, but she knew that it was something she had to say. Teddy took her hand, smoothing his fingers ever so gently over hers.

"Really," he whispered, and pulled her in to kiss her, hard. Lily gasped against his lips before she could respond, but when she did, she forced upon him all the pain and jealousy he had put on her over the past years. In that kiss, she let go of all her doubts, of all her insecurities…even about making it to Heaven. Because when Lily thought about it, she didn't need Heaven.

Teddy Remus Lupin was her heaven.

* * *

**Elsi: Sorry if you didn't like it. I wrote it on the way to and from a friend's house. **

**Trek: Well, we hope you like it, but if you didn't, there's no need to tell us that.**

**Elsi: You CAN tell us what advice you can give me! You CAN tell me what you liked about it! You CANNOT flame me!**

**Trek: Yeah. So. Anyways. Sorry if there's no second chapter this week. That's Elsi, unprepared as usual. Blame her.**

**Elsi: Thank you, Trek. Annoying imaginary friend.**


	9. Ice Cream

**Elsi: And now, ladies and gentlemen, we welcome you to the presenting of: Lessons and Lies- Ice Cream.**

**Trek: It's basically the exact opposite of the chapter before it! See, in that chapter, it was a serious, after-Hogwarts, thing. In this one, well...it's really not.**

**Elsi: Gueeeeeess what?**

**Trek: What?**

**Elsi: I don't own Harry Potter. If I did, well...it would probably have died because I wouldn't have finished it...**

* * *

Ice Cream

Lucy skipped through Diagon Alley, her strawberry-blonde braids flapping out behind her. Her bright blue eyes followed the shops as they passed by. It was all so big!

"Lucy, don't go too far ahead," warned Percy Weasley. Lucy stopped turning around to face her parents and Molly, who was struggling under the weight of her new school books.

"Sorry, Mum!" she said cheerfully. "I'm just so excited!"

"Excited!" groaned Molly, looking out from behind her giant stack of books. "You're not the one going to Hogwarts!"

"You'll have a wonderful time, Molly," Audrey soothed.

"Sure," snorted Molly. "Because everyone knows that Victoire and Teddy have _so_ much fun with their schoolwork."

"I think Hogwarts will be great!" chirped Lucy, taking her father's hand and skipping along once more. "There will be magic…and Quittich…and friends…and-."

"And schoolwork," cut in Molly.

"What's so bad about school?" asked Lucy incredulously.

"Lucy, you're _seven,_" replied Molly with a quick roll of her eyes. Sticking her bottom lip out, Lucy crossed her arms and glared at her sister.

"So?"

"So, I-."

"That's enough, girls," Audrey cut in. Molly rolled her eyes again; Lucy stuck out her tongue defiantly.

Just then, there was a jingling noise, and a young girl around Lucy's age walked out of the ice cream parlor nearby.

"Daddy, Daddy!" cried Lucy, pulling on Percy's hand to steer him around. "Can I get some ice cream?" Percy and Audrey exchanged a glance and a shrug.

"I don't see why not," replied Percy. "Audrey, can you take Molly to get her robes? We'll meet you outside Madame Malkins."

"Yay!" celebrated Lucy, clapping her hands as her mother and sister strolled off in the other direction. "Yay! Thank you, Daddy, thank you!" Energetically, Lucy tugged her father towards the ice cream shop, stepping in and smelling all of the flavors. She bounded up to the side of the display case and pressed her face up against the glass, peering in at all the colors of the various ice cream flavors.

"Can I have that one?" Lucy asked, pointing to the ice cream that was bright pink. Percy glanced over at the case.

"Raspberry hazelnut?" he questioned.

"I want it!" declared Lucy.

"Alright, then," agreed Percy, and he began to order. Lucy kept staring at the ice cream flavors, not even noticing when a young boy pressed up to look next to her.

"That looks really yummy," he commented, pointing to a light green flavor.

"Yeah," she agreed, looking at him. The boy had blonde hair, so light it could be called white by some standards, and grey eyes. He was short and skinny, a very pale, slightly mousey little boy. "I'm Lucy. What's your name?"

"Scorpius," replied the boy. "Scorpius Hyperion Malfoy."

"That's a really nice name," Lucy commented. She licked all the syllables and the sounds it made. "Scorpius. Scorpius Hyperion Malfoy."

"I like your name, too," Scorpius told her. "It's really pretty."

"My sister's name is Molly," continued Lucy, "but I like my name better than hers."

"Yeah," agreed Scorpius. "Yours has that pretty c- sound in it."

"What ice cream are you getting?" asked Lucy.

"That one," Scorpius told her, eagerly pointing to a pale blue flavor with chunks of red scattered through it. "What about you?"

"That one," Lucy answered, indicating to her flavor. "I think Daddy called it hasberry razelnut or something like that."

"Mmm," said Scorpius. "I like ice cream."

"Me, too!" cried Lucy, clapping her hands together. "I'm sure our ice cream is going to be really yummy."

"It always is," answered Scorpius.

"Lucy! Come on!" Lucy turned away from Scorpius to see Percy walking towards the door, looking over his shoulder. He had two ice cream cones in his hand, one for the both of them.

"Okay!" called Lucy. She skipped off towards him, but turned back to wave to Scorpius. "Bye!"

"Bye, Lucy!" replied Scorpius, waving in return.

"Who was that little boy?" asked Percy, handing Lucy her ice cream. After taking a lick, Lucy looked up proudly.

"His name is Scorpius Hyperion Malfoy," she answered promptly. "Isn't that a pretty name, Daddy?" Percy didn't reply, for his face had lost its happy glow. Lucy's smile fell from her face. "Daddy?" Shaking away his instant sorrow, Percy turned to Lucy and forced a smile on his face.

"Of course, Lucy," he told her. "It's a very pretty name."

* * *

**Elsi: How do you write Scorpius/Lucy? It doesn't come easily to me, because Lucy seems like such a little kid in my mind. Like, the other Lucy/Scorpius chapter is about a fluffy little critter. Seriously?**

**Trek: Don't diss yourself. I liked your chapter.**

**Elsi: Thank you. HEY! LOOK! I HAVE THREE CHAPTERS UP - as soon as I update the next one - IN ONE WEEK! I hope that's good enough payment for last week's little weakling total of ONE.**

**Trek: You know what would get those chapters a-coming?**

**Elsi: Reviews. See, I love this story to bits. How about you guys? Any suggestions for something I MUST DO in a later chapter? Just a "That was cool" type of comment? Pretty please?**


	10. Jump Rope

**Elsi: Look, another chapter! That's...let's count. One...Two...THREE! YAYS! Three chappies in ONE WEEK! Happiness!**

**Trek: Oh, and just to burst Elsi's bubble: SHE DON'T OWN NO HARRY POTTER, CLEAR?**

**Elsi: Well if I DON'T own NO Harry Potter, then...**

**Trek: Elsi...**

**Elsi: It's a double negative, you see...**

**Trek: HEY LOOK! IT'S A CHAPTER!**

* * *

Jump Rope

Roxanne leaned back in the porch swing. Another Weasley summer, this time at her house, was winding to a close. Everyone was over: Rose and Hugo, James, Al, and Lily, Molly and Lucy, Louis, Dominique and Victoire, even Teddy was there. It was a beautiful summer day, especially for relaxing.

"Your turn, Lily!" The overjoyed cries of Lucy, Lily, Rose, and Molly rang in Roxanne's ears. She smiled; it was so entertaining to watch the children play games. Today's was jump rope, making Roxanne think back to the days where she and Dominique would beg Fred to play the little chanting games with them. As soon as her Hogwarts days came, she outgrew it. But it would always be in her heart.

"_Ice cream, soda, cherry on top._

_Who's your boyfriend, I forgot._

_Is it A, B, C, D, E, F, G, H, I…"_ Roxanne watched as Lily nimbly jumped on her que on each letter; Rose and Molly spun the rope with the expertise only their nine-year-old selves had.

"_Q, R, S, T, U, V, W-."_ On _W,_ Lily messed, up, leaving the rope hanging at her feet.

"W!" squealed Lucy, who was waiting for her turn. "Let's see! You can be girlfriend to…Walter Thomas!"

"But he's icky," Lily said, scrunching up her nose. "He plays with bugs and airplanes and stuff. He doesn't even know how to play Quidditch."

"Well, that's who you got!" cried Molly. "Lucy, your turn!"

"Yay!" cried Lucy, running into position. Lily traded with Molly, so the blonde-haired girl stood next in line.

_"Ice cream soda, cherry on top,_

_Who's your boyfriend, I forgot,_

_Is it A, B, C, D, E, F, G-."_ Lucy, unfortunately not as skilled a jump roper as her cousins, fell short at G. There was a silence for a moment as the children tried to think of someone they knew who had _G_ as a first name. Unable to resist, Roxanne cried out one of her friends.

"Greg Nieback," she suggested idly. Four heads snapped around to stare at her. Roxanne, wondering if she had interfered, made it look like she didn't care, and was swinging without a care in the world.

"Ooh, you're dating one of Roxanne's friends!" called Rose, smiling widely.

"Roxanne, will you play with us?" asked Lily, her green eyes stretching wide.

"Yeah!" echoed Molly. "Will you?"

"I don't know…" started Roxanne, unsure of how well she could jump rope.

"Pleeeeeease," begged Lucy. Soon the other three were chiming in, until the pleasing became too much for Roxanne.

"Oh, alright," she agreed.

"YAY!" cried the children, jumping up and down. Rose and Lily got a firm grip on the handles of the jump rope and indicated for Roxanne to step in. Smiling, she did, and soon the rope flew over her head. Instinctively, Roxanne jumped into the air, and soon the three of them found their rhythm. Then, Lucy and Molly began to chant:

"_Ice cream soda, cherry on top._

_Who's your boyfriend, I forgot._

_Is it A, B, C, D, E, F, G…_" The song went on, and Roxanne kept jumping. They looped through the alphabet once, starting over at A once they reached Z. It was then that she began to get tired.

"_M, N, O, P, Q, R, S, T-." _Roxanne missed her step on _T,_ tripping forward and dislodging the jump rope.

"T!" cried Molly. "Let's see…"

"Teddy!" cried Lily. "What about Teddy!" Echoes of _Teddy, Teddy!_ Caught on with the girls, until Roxanne smiled and nodded in approval, backing them off.

Suddenly, the front door shut and Teddy himself walked down the steps.

"Teddy, Teddy!" called Lucy, scrambling over to the young wizard.

"Hiya, Luce," replied Teddy, his hair flashing pink, her favorite color.

"Guess what, Teddy! Roxanne is your girlfriend!" Roxanne felt the heat rise to her face as she met Teddy's dark eyes. She tilted her head towards the jump rope as an indication of how she was in that position. At last, Teddy chuckled.

"I guess she is, then," he responded. "Well, I'm off. See all of you later!"

"Bye, Teddy!" exclaimed Lucy and Lily at the same time. Roxanne gave the family friend a little wave before turning away.

"Wait, Teddy! Don't you have to give your girlfriend a kiss goodbye?" asked Rose loudly. Roxanne turned around, ready to burst with embarrassment at this point.

"No, that's alright," Roxanne objected, and she could hear Teddy saying the same things.

"Come on!" urged Molly, pulling Roxanne closer to the older 'cousin'.

"Alright, alright," Teddy said, and he gave Roxanne a quick peck on the cheek. Though she tried not to admit it, Roxanne's heart pounded in her chest. She met Teddy's eyes quickly, but then looked away.

"That wasn't a kiss!" declared Lily. "That was just a little hello!" Roxanne turned slowly to face Teddy again, cheeks burning.

"I suppose I'd better, just to please them," he said quietly.

"I suppose so," answered Roxanne. Nodding, Teddy pulled her in and swiftly brushed his lips against hers. Now Roxanne's heart fluttered free, pounding like a hammer in her chest. They stepped away from each other, and Teddy nodded to her.

"That's more like it," Lily said appreciatively as Teddy winked to them and walked off and disappeared as he appearated. "Come on, Molly. It's your turn."

As the four children continued their game, Roxanne stared at the spot where Teddy had disappearated. She slowly touched a hand to her lips, as if she could still feel where he had kissed her. Realizing what she was doing, Roxanne blinked a few times and whirled around to go sit back on the porch. But as she rocked back and forth, thinking denying thoughts, she couldn't help but admit that she was glad that she had tripped on T.

* * *

**Elsi: Lame ending. I know. I've been doing that lately. Maybe it's just the fact that I've got MUSCIAL AUDITIONS TOMORROW! Not like you cared. **

**Trek: There is something ELSI cares about (other than her audition).**

**Elsi: I care about something? Let's see...audtion, softball, reviews, family...OH!**

**Trek: Yeah...so...if you could review? Please?**

**Lucy/Lily/Molly/Rose: !**

**Elsi: Please? I know I'm not as cute as them, but still. Please?**


	11. Kitten

**Elsi: I'm really, really sorry about this. Want to know why?**

**Trek: Sure you do. It's because Elsi really doesn't like this chapter.**

**Elsi: It was really boring for me. FORGIVE ME!**

**Trek: Uh...right. Elsi doesn't own Harry Potter. Cool?**

* * *

Kitten

Fifteen-year-old Lucy Weasley pulled her sweater tight around her as she stepped out into the freezing cold. Snow whipped around her, pulling her hair in all different directions. Shutting the door of Three Broomsticks behind her, she tried to think about warm butterbeer and crackling fire instead of freezing ice and screaming blizzard. It didn't work.

Not in the least bit surprised, Lucy began to make her way up to the castle. She tried to ignore the looks of other students as she passed; their whispers, however, reached her. Lucy rolled her eyes the third time she heard the words "no" and "friends" in one sentence. Of course she had friends…they were just drinking bottle after bottle of firewhiskey at that moment. It would have been terrible for her to stay, even if they promised to give her a fun time.

Lucy shivered at the thought of what 'fun time' meant to them. That drunk, they were probably having a good shag with some random guy twice their age. Lucy shuddered, for there had been plenty of men in there who looked ready to take the virginity of some drunk student. She was glad she had gotten out of there.

A tiny sound broke through the blizzard, making Lucy stop dead in her tracks. What was that? It sounded like the teeniest wailing. Lucy shielded her eyes and looked around. There! A tiny blot of color stuck out from the cold – a cardboard box. Crossing over to the box, Lucy peered inside to find a tiny grey kitten, covered in frost and screeching its tiny lungs out.

At once, Lucy's heart melted. She reached out to touch the kitten and found it completely covered in snow. The tiny cat opened its eyes and looked up at her, and Lucy made a few soothing noises before it stopped yelling. Concerned for the tiny creature, Lucy took off her scarf and wrapped the kitten in it, leaving only its tiny head sticking out of the bundle. She cradled the kitten close to her and continued up to the castle, hoping there would be someone there that could take it, because she already had a pet.

Lucy stepped into Hogwarts and at once marched upstairs to the Gryffindor common room, where she released the kitten to sit by the fire. It gave a tiny mew and curled up next to Lucy still, shivering. Running a finger over it, Lucy realized that if she had found the kitten two minutes later, it would be dead.

"Who can take it?" she asked herself out loud, attracting the attention of a few seventh years. Not her friends: they were too busy doing who knows what, and plus, they would throw the kitten out because they were so drunk. She couldn't take it to her Lily, either: Lily wouldn't be able to care for a kitten. So who else could she go to?

Then it hit her in a blinding second: the sweet boy in her year, the Hufflepuff, the one who she had met in Diagon Alley at just seven years old. What was his name? Lucy grinned: Scorpius Hyperion Malfoy.

Standing up, Lucy picked up the kitten in her scarf again, bundling it into her sweater so it wouldn't look too suspicious. She knew the way to the Hufflepuff Commons well: Lily and Rose used to take her there so they could scare various Hufflepuff first years. Lucy started along the all-too-familiar path before it hit her: Scorpius wasn't there. No, she had asked him earlier. He was in the library!

Once again, Lucy turned around, startling her tiny burden. She picked up the pace now, scrambling down staircases and along corridors until she halted at the entrance to the library. Lucy gently set the kitten down at the entrance: she would get in so much trouble if there was an animal in the library.

"Scorpius!" she called quietly, walking along the shelves. "Scorpius Malfoy?"

"Yes?" From around the corner came Scorpius, levitating a stack of books behind him. "Oh. Hi."

"Hi. I…er…I need to ask you a favor." How was one to go about this?

"Okay," agreed Scorpius. "Help me put my books away."

"Actually," Lucy countered, thinking of the kitten. "I'll meet you outside. What I need to ask you about is waiting there."

"Okay…"

The kitten hadn't moved when Lucy got back, much to her relief. And sense no one had noticed it, she assumed it hadn't made much noise, either. There Lucy waited until Scorpius came out of the library with his bag slung across his bag.

"Alright, what did you need to- is that a kitten?"

"Yeah…" trailed Lucy. "I found her on the way back from Hogsmeade, but…I can't keep her."

"Why did you bring her, then?"

"I couldn't just leave her!" cried Lucy, her eyes going wide. "I was hoping you could take care of her…because you're such a good person." Scorpius hesitated for a long moment, staring at the tiny bundle of fur in Lucy's hands. At last, his shoulders dropped and he gave in.

"Oh, alright," he agreed with a sigh. "Bring her to the Common Room, and I'll find her a place to stay."

"Thank you!" cried Lucy, overcome with delight. As they walked back, Lucy explained the whole situation to him, not failing to mention even her thoughts about where her friends where. Scorpius didn't say much, which didn't surprise her. He rarely spoke in class, and he rarely spoke when she talked to him. She didn't even realize where they were until Scorpius sat down on his bed, making Lucy jerk awake. Gently, she lowered the kitten onto the bed and took the scarf away. With a mrow of surprise, she curled her tiny claws into the bedding and fell asleep.

"I guess she is pretty cute," admitted Scorpius. "I'll be happy to keep her."

"That's wonderful!" declared Lucy. "Thank you!" She swooped in and kissed him on the cheek before prancing away, her red hair flying behind her.

Scorpius watched her go without a word, knowing that he had flushed a dark shade of pink. He glanced down at the tiny kitten on his bed and smiled again.

"I think I'll name you…Lucy," he said to her, "For the girl I fell in love with when I was seven." And though he knew the cat couldn't hear him, he could swear that Lucy purred.

* * *

**Elsi: Well, that was slightly annoying, wasn't it? Yeah, I know.**

**Trek: See you next time! **

**Elsi: Hold it, Trekkers. Hey, everyone? Can you pretty please review? Because this is getting like...three hundred hits in ten days. So...can I have one? Pretty please? With steak on top?**


	12. Liar

**Elsi: Bouncy bouncy bouncy bouncy bouncy**

**Trek: Hey...uh...sorry...math class.**

**Elsi: Yeah, I was, like, too busy, like, breaking up with my, like, boyfriend Joe Hottie to, like, write. Sorry.**

**Trek: Facepalm. Anyways, er...sorry. ELSI DOESN'T OWN HARRY FREAKIN POTTER! The song or the series...**

**Elsi: YAY! CHAPTER!**

* * *

Liar

"It's funny," Rose said quietly. Molly quietly looked up from her schoolwork.

"What's funny?" she asked, keeping her voice down, because she could just tell they were getting into some private conversation.

"Well, you and Roxy have these guys, these guys who are just…there for you, you know?"

"So do you," pointed out Molly.

"I do not," scoffed Rose. She pushed her Transfiguration paper to the side, showing Molly how ready she was to get into a sympathetic point. Molly rolled her eyes in response.

"Liar," she said simply. Rose gave a small snort.

"My brothers don't count," she snapped. Molly opened her mouth to argue, and then she continued, "And nor do my cousins." With a successful nod, Rose watched her cousin struggle to come up with something. "See?" She added a hint of sorrow to her voice. "No one."

"You liar!" cried Molly, completely startling Rose when she slapped her hands on the table. "You have Scorpius!"

"Shhhh!" hissed Rose as a few students turned to look at them. "The whole school doesn't have to know!" Molly shrugged, sitting back in her chair.

"It's true, though."

"Is not," huffed Rose. "He's not like Lysander is with you or Lorcan is with Roxy."

"Yeah, but Ly doesn't really count. He's just, you know, a label boyfriend. He isn't really _there_ for me, like Scorpius is for you. And, plus, Lorcan graduated two years ago. He doesn't count."

"You are a liar," snapped Rose, but her heart gave a twinge at the truth in those words.

"It was meant to be," insisted Molly, shrugging her shoulders. "The one day you kiss, sparks are going to fly." Rose bit her lip, thinking back to that Christmas. The moment replayed in her mind: grasping his strong shoulders and forcing him to the ground, pushing down against his warm chest, feeling his muscular arms pulling her close to him, her hands shaping the face that fit ever so perfectly into her hands, pressing her mouth against his with all the force she had and feeling him respond, his warm lips sliding against her own. It had taken everything she had to wink and flounce off, but she had done it.

"No, I'm going to have to disagree with you," she lied casually. At once, she knew it was the wrong thing to say, for Molly's brown eyes went wide with amazement.

"You mean you've actually _kissed_ him?" she gasped.

"I had to, at the snowball fight," Rose defended. "How else was I to get him in the perfect spot for getting squished by a pile of acorns?" Seeing the teasing in her friend's face, Rose stood up, gathered her belongings, and turned to go.

"I've got to go. I promised I'd meet Roxanne." Another lie, but Rose had to get away.

"You mean you're going to leave me _alone?_" gasped Molly.

"Sorry," muttered Rose, but then she shoved her chair in and walked out of the library as quickly as she could. When she was far enough away from the library, she dropped her books and leaned against the wall, closing her eyes.

"Rose Weasley," she whispered to herself, "you are one big, fat, liar." The words had barely escaped her mouth when there was a small skittering of feet and a large impact. A warm chest pressed against her, slamming her into the wall and making her see stars behind her eyelids. Soft hands grasped her hips gently, and a full pair of lips sought her own passionately, hungrily. After her initial shock, Rose quickly found her hands knotted in even softer, warmer, richer hair. What was she doing? Who was this stranger kissing her in the corridor? But as these questions flickered through Rose's mind, she felt herself relaxing, because it all just felt so familiar, and –

It was in that moment that Rose realized it. She took her hands and shoved as hard as she could, dislodging everything from its natural order. Confirming her fears, staring across at her, breathing heavily, was the devil of devils, Scorpius Malfoy. Anger welled up inside of Rose so fast that she held back angry tears to see him clearly.

"Screw you, Scorpius!" she screamed. The bleach blonde eyebrows raised skeptically.

"Is that a request?" he said sleazily. Rose gave a scream of disgust and backed away, pressing herself even more against the wall.

"You know, Rose," continued Scorpius, using the same tone, "that's quite an interesting position."

"What is wrong with you?" yelled Rose. Without thinking, she rushed forward and slapped him hard across the face. Or at least she tried.

With the agility of the Seeker that he was, Scorpius grabbed a hold of her hand and pulled her to him again, shoving his tongue in her mouth. Rose pushed him away again.

"James got to you, didn't he?" she whispered, unaware that he was still holding her tight to his chest.

"You could say that," grinned Scorpius, and he leaned in again, but Rose ducked.

"Well snap out of it," she scolded. "When you're regular, non-perverted, Scorpius, then I might give you a chance." That being her comment on the matter, Rose stalked off down the hall.

"What? But you've always been…" Scorpius didn't finish his sentence, and Rose didn't mind. She replied to his question under her breath, risking a smile.

"Scorpius? I lied."

* * *

**Elsi: huh huh huh huh huh? was it goooooooood?**

**Trek: Sighs. Can you guys ignore her hyper randomness and review please? We've had like...no reviews, and it's sad.**

**Elsi: BOO HOO HOO!**

**Trek: Yeah. That. So, can you? Thanks. And, we'll have the next chapter up soon. Lysander/Dominique, be prepared.**


	13. Music

**Elsi: Hello, friends. I feel sick. Well, that's cuz I am. But, it also means I can present you with this! **

**Trek: She doesn't own Harry Potter. She does own the random piano in the middle of Hogwarts. **

**Elsi: Lol.**

* * *

Music

Lysander ate his dinner in silence, poking miserably at the broccoli on it. Across the table from him, Lorcan and Graham – Graham Redwood, their Muggle-born friend – respected his grim mood.

"Is this about…" Lysander lifted his head to see Graham silently mouth the words _Victoire._ Lorcan studied Lysander's face, and Lysander held his twin's gaze. At last he gave an incoherent mumble (which, to him, was nothing more than "shdjfeiand") and returned to his meal. Graham and Lorcan shared a worried glance.

Murderously, Lysander shot a look down the table to where his ex-girlfriend, Victoire Weasley, was leaning against her new boyfriend, Walter Thomas. He felt his hand tighten around his fork, and his other hand dug into the table. Her laughter rang from all the way down the table as Walter quickly tickled her, and it shot Lysander back to a time where she had been laughing…at him.

He returned to his food, trying to block all memories of Victoire out of his mind. She was nothing to him now, and he would have to keep reminding himself of that. Seeing Lysander's desire to be alone, Graham and Lorcan began talking about Quidditch, though Lysander noticed the two of them shooting him concerned glances all the same.

Suddenly, a flash of silky strawberry blonde caught his eye. Lysander's head jerked up, and he wondered vaguely if Victoire was coming to speak with him.

But it was only Dominique Weasley, storming out of the Great Hall as if her life depended on it. From the brief glance of her face, Lysander guessed she had been crying. Sudden intrigue pricked at Lysander's heart, and he found himself watching Victoire's younger sister stride out of his sight. Shaking his head, Lysander returned to his food.

The laughter down the table continued, but it wasn't Victoire's. Lysander shot a glance towards her to see that she and Walter Thomas had proceeded to snog passionately. He curled his lip in disgust and turned back to his food, but a strong feeling of jealousy had arrived in his stomach. Finally, Lysander simply pushed away his plate and marched out of the Great Hall.

He climbed staircases randomly, muttering to himself many a swear word he would like to say to Victoire. Without reason, Lysander took a turn down the third floor corridor, marching around the castle without a care in the world. Suddenly, he stopped, staring into a window that overshadowed the grounds.

"I wrote you a bloody song!" he shouted. A few second-year students studying nearby shot him a curious glance. Lysander glared furiously at them and marched up the staircase nearby. He choked back tears and continued to walk, half blinded at this point. Pictures of Victoire and Walter blurred his vision.

Suddenly, a gentle sound washed towards him: the sound of a piano. Lysander froze in his tracks, letting the music process in his mind. Then he shook his head furiously as fresh memories washed up.

_He sat Victoire down in a chair and lightly began to play the piano. The music he had composed flowed automatically through his hands, and he let every ounce of love he had for her wash out into his piece. The song became more intense as Lysander reached the point he had made to describe their many adventures, and just as it began to get light again-_

_"What is the point of this?" Victoire asked bluntly. At once, Lysander jerked out of his trance, and his hands stopped moving over the keys._

_"It's a song…for you. I wrote it."_

_"But it has no words. Who cares if it has no words?" Shock choked Lysander for a long moment._

_"I've been working on this for a month, juggling schoolwork and Quidditch and everything else…" he trailed, desperately wanting to know how much he cared._

_"You did it…for me?" Lysander nodded urgently, studying her shocked face for the pleasure he knew would follow. But nothing but laugher escaped VIctoire's lips, cruel laughter that was like a slap in the face. The eagerness fell from Lysander's heart._

_"That's the stupidest thing I've ever heard!" she cried, her sides shaking with laughter. Lysander watched for a long, painful moment, then he stood up and left, tears in his eyes._

"SHUT UP!" screamed Lysander, swinging into the classroom where the music was coming from. He blinked a few times in surprise. Victoire?

No…it was Dominique. The younger Weasley spun around, meeting Lysander's glare with one of her own.

"Do you have a problem with my music?" she snapped, rising from the bench and stalking across the room towards him.

"Sorry," apologized Lysander between gritted teeth, "but I'd like you to be quiet. Music makes me feel bad." Suddenly, recognition flashed in Dominique's eyes.

"I know you," she said quietly. "You're the fool that wrote my sister a song."

"Thanks for the support," hissed Lysander viciously.

"She's a terrible person, isn't she?" Dominique snapped. "I can't believe you decided to give her the present of _classical_ music, much less an actual _homemade gift._"

"SHUT UP!" roared Lysander. Dominique's anger seemed to grow.

"GET OVER HER!" she screeched back. "You aren't the only one who's gone through a tough breakup!" The words brought tears to Dominique's eyes, and she didn't even restrain them. Lysander took a slow step back, realizing what she had done.

"I'm sorry," he said quickly. "I didn't mean to make you cry." Dominique didn't say anything, but she continued to weep. Lysander tentatively moved to her side, not really sure what to make of the situation. To his surprise, Dominique fell into his arms, making him stumble back to catch her.

"Play me a song?" she whispered as her hands clutched his robes. Lysander patted her back gently. He cast a glance at the piano, dreading the moment when his hands touched those keys. No. He couldn't. But at the same time, the sorry-looking witch in his arms made his heart cry with pity. Sighing deeply, Lysander led Dominique over to the piano and sat her down on the bench. He faced the black and white keys, wondering what to play.

His hands shaking slightly, Lysander placed his fingertips in their position, and pressed down slowly on the keys. A glorious chord met his ears, and joy leaped in Lysander's heart. At once he began to play, letting the music soar through his fingers, soothing his own soul and slowing Dominique's tears.

Vaguely, he realized that Dominique had stopped crying. He glanced quickly at her face to meet her blue eyes, still watery. He thought to himself that her eyes were much prettier than Victoire's green ones. Still, he played, picking up intensity as the song did.

In one moment, Lysander realized what he was playing. His fingers left the keys at once, repulsed.

"Don't stop," urged Dominique. "It was beautiful." Lysander shook his head, recoiling away.

"I'm so sorry," he whispered, and he edged out of the room.

"Then…thank you…" The words set a warm fire in Lysander's heart, and he quietly promised that he would return to the hidden Hogwarts piano.

_Oh, you make me want to listen to music again…_

_

* * *

_

**Elsi: That last line is from _"_Music Again" by Adam Lambert. Which...I don't own.**

**Trek: You don't own much.**

**Elsi: No, I really don't. Did you like the random Hogwarts piano? Who knows where that came from.**

**Trek: OH, and Elsi would really like you to review.**

**Elsi: I could have told them myself. Harumph.**

**Trek: Stop being a grump!**


	14. Nudge

**Elsi: ANGSTY FANFIC (clap clap clap clap clap) ANGSTY FANFIC!**

**Trek: I don't believe you're capable of writing a fluffy Dominique/Teddy fic.**

**Elsi: heh. This is extremely one-sided. You'll see.**

**Trek: Elsi isn't JK Rowling. And she's not taking Polyjuice Potion to pretend to be JK Rowling either. Just saying.**

**Elsi: Thanks to KaitlynEmmaRose for the epic awesome reviews! I could never get tired of reviews...**

* * *

Nudge

Dominique lay in her bed, just staring up at her midnight-blue ceiling. In a few hours, she would be holding flowers, watching her sister and the love of her life begin their lives together. Biting her lip, Dominique closed her eyes and took a few moments of silence, in which she remembered the night it had finally happened. Teddy had given in to Victoire's deepest wishes, working extra shifts at his job to get the money needed to buy Victoire that diamond ring she'd always wanted.

Dominique flung her eyes and she looked down at the silver band studded with emeralds placed on her index finger. Teddy hadn't even asked for it back. Her heart gave a small tremble as she reflected on the night she had received it, the night Teddy had first proposed to Victoire.

At last, Dominique decided there was simply nothing she could do in bed. She kicked off the sheets on the bed and sprinted to the shower, where she flicked on the water and stripped off her clothes. With loving care, she removed Teddy's ring and set it on the side of the sink.

Her shower was cold, and it helped wake Dominique up. She made it brief, not wanting to waste time she could be 'adoringly' helping her sister get dressed. When she stepped out of the shower, she stared in the mirror for a long moment, gazing at her own face, blotchy from the tears of the morning. Dominique sighed. It would have to wait.

The dresses Victoire had chosen were a light sea-foam green in color; they were floaty and simple, which was perfect for Dominique. She pulled her hair up with the flowery clip that Victoire had assigned and slipped into the dress. Dominique sighed, again looking at herself in the mirror. Biting her lip, Dominique reached blindly for the mascara, but she stopped as she nudged something along the way.

Dominique cried out. She had nudged the ring into the sink, where it slid down and fell into the drain. She gasped, staring at where it had vanished. All thoughts of magic left her as she fell into a state of panic, soon choking on the thoughts of losing her precious ring. It took several wasted minutes before Dominique finally realized that her wand lay on the nightstand. She lunged for it, spinning around and shouting her first real words of the morning:

"Accio ring!" A few clangs later, the ring came flying towards her, and Dominique grasped it and pulled it to her chest, fingering the silver between her fingers. She brushed it off with the bedsheets, rinsed it softly with water, and nudged it back onto her finger, smiling broadly.

It occurred to Dominique just then how stupid the past five minutes had been. She dismissed the thought at once, but it returned a few minutes later.

"It's Teddy's ring," she said firmly. "He gave it to me. It's not wrong of me to obsess." She bustled around and shoved some toast down her throat, being as careful as she could to not leave crumbs on her bridesmaid dress. As she gulped down a glass of pumpkin juice, the ring clanged against the glass. Dominique paused, observing it for a moment. It then processed to her why she felt so stupid.

"All that over a ring," she mumbled pensively. "Just like…Victoire." The last word was more of a gasp, but all Dominique cared about was the fact that she had been as absurd as her sister had – it was simply a ring, not a thousand galleons! She debated for a long moment over what to do in the state of her disgust, then, she slipped the ring from her finger and nudged it onto the counter, leaving quickly without a second glance.

Dominique chose to walk for a while before apparating, just to reflect on the day. She fidgeted as she walked, fingering the spot the ring would have been. Shaking her head, she forced herself to keep her hands by her side. She wouldn't be like Victoire, not ever.

Turning down a small alley, Dominique settled on thinking about how her incident _hadn't_ been like Victoire's.

"Victoire had to be specific about the ring," she told herself quietly. "You just cared that you had one. Victoire didn't care that Teddy gave it to her. You didn't care what it looked like. The only thing that mattered to Victoire was its quality. You just cared who gave it to you." She stopped in her tracks. "Victoire didn't care that Teddy gave it to her…she doesn't care that he's marrying her!" Without a second thought, Dominique turned on the spot, fixing her mind fiercely on Shell Cottage (Victoire had wanted a beautiful wedding by the seashore). As soon as she felt her feet touch ground, she sped off towards where she knew Teddy would be getting ready.

"There's my other little girl!" her father said as she strode in the door, but Dominique ignored his open arms and continued towards Louis' room – Teddy's spot. She pounded on the door, ignoring when Emily, Victoire's Maid of Honor, poked her head out of Victoire's room.

"Teddy Remus Lupin!" she cried, banging as hard as she could. "I need to talk to you!" The door swung open slowly, and Teddy's friend Kevin appeared. Dominique brushed past him quickly, stalking to where Teddy was staring at himself in the mirror. His hair was a pale grey, and she could see the lines of worry on his pale face.

"Teddy!" exclaimed Dominique. Teddy slowly turned to face her, his black eyes grim. Dominique paused in front of him. What was she here for again? "I…I had to talk to you."

"Should we go, Ted?" asked Kevin cautiously, indicating to himself and the other three men in the room. Teddy didn't answer for a moment, but then he nodded quickly. The four of them left the room, shutting the door behind them with a bang. Teddy slowly sat on Louis' bed, putting his head in his hands and giving a shaky sigh.

"I don't know if I can do this, Dom," he whispered.

"You don't have to do this, Teddy," soothed Dominique, coming to sit beside him on the bed. She touched his arm softly, feeling a flicker of excitement at his uncertainty. "Just call the wedding off." Teddy cursed quietly, looking across the room and shaking his head.

"I can't do that," he said. "I have to go through with this. I've worked so hard for this day. I have to go through with this." He stood up, his hair turning a determined shade of red.

"Teddy…" started Dominique. How was she to ruin him now, on his wedding day? "Think about it."

"There's no time to think about it!" cried Teddy, whirling around. "This is my wedding day. In a few hours I'm going to marry Victoire. I can't turn back now."

"Do you love her?" asked Dominique. Teddy took a deep breath, his wild gaze finally settling on her.

"Yes," he said. "Yes, I love her. Okay, Dom? Okay? I love her. I love Victoire Weasley. I love her." Dominique felt her heart sinking at his words, knowing deep inside that he meant it. "Now if you're trying to make me back out of this, it's not working. I'm going to marry your sister, whether you like it or not." For the first time, Dominique realized what the look in his eyes meant. He knew.

"She doesn't love you!" she shouted. There was a deadly silence as Teddy stared at her in shock and anger. "All she cares about is your pretty ring, and the pretty dress, and the pretty you! She doesn't love you! She's using you!" Dominique's eyes started to blur with tears, and she could hardly see the color of Teddy's hair change to a flaming orange of fury.

"Dominique, you're wrong!" he shouted. "This is about you! It's always been about you! In your imagination, she's cruel, and harsh, and I don't deserve her, because you deserve to be with me! It's not about you, anymore, Dominique, okay? This is my wedding day. I'm marrying Victoire, and there's nothing you can do about it!" Dominique saw the anger in his eyes, and she couldn't even think of retaliating. His words shattered her heart like a hammer, and she found herself unable to speak. "Now get out." Dominique couldn't help but obey, gasping and choking on her own tears. At last, the door slammed behind her, and she collapsed to the ground, slipping off her strappy silver sandals. She looked down at the beautiful sea-green dress and wiped away her tears. She couldn't do this.

"Victoire?" she called, keeping her voice steady. Her sister appeared, looking absolutely radiant in her wedding dress. "I can't do this. I'm sorry."

"Dominique!" cried Victoire, but Dominique was already storming away, as far as she could get. She ignored the voices of her family and friends; she ignored the curious glances of many others. This was it. Victoire's wedding just wasn't her thing.

Dominique appearated back to her flat and changed into shorts and a tee. She pulled up a chair and did nothing but eat ice cream, trying to not think about Victoire's wedding.

But one thing caught her eye: the little ring on the counter. Fury flooded Dominique's veins, and she stood up, crashing across the kitchen. She took a hold of the ring and set it on the rail of her balcony, and from there, Dominique nudged it down into the street below. She would never wear that ring again. And as it spiraled to the ground and fell with a crash onto the sidewalk, Dominique wished Teddy Lupin had never nudged his way into her life.

* * *

**Elsi: Well, how was that for one-sided angst? Dominique/Teddy fluff is totally nonexistant...tee hee.**

**Trek: Sigh. Oh well. I think that was okay. The ending was really rushed though. Lost your Sentence Fluency, there, eh, Elsi?**

**Elsi: Don't you Six-Plus-One-Rubric me!**

**Trek: Okay, okay! Hey, guys! Review please!**


	15. Ornament

**Elsi: Woot! I'm alive!**

**Trek: That you are. And along the way, what have you done?**

**Elsi: Huh?**

**Trek: NaNoWriMo?**

**Elsi: OH! I WROTE 50,000 WORDS THIS MONTH! IN STORY FORM! And so now I'm updating this. It's Teddy/Victoire, my first oneshot that doesn't involve an anti-Victoire personality...**

* * *

Ornament

"You're crazy. I love you, but you're crazy." Teddy smirked up at Victoire, who was currently perched at the top of a ladder, balancing precariously on the edge as she reached up to place the angel on the top of their real Christmas tree, the one that Teddy had dragged in to the house a few nights prior. Victoire put both feet on the ladder and looked at him through frustrated blue eyes. "No offense, darling."

"It's our first Christmas with both Renee and Marc here," replied Victoire, her voice light and cheerful. "That makes it the best Christmas we've ever had."

"What about our first Christmas after we were married?" demanded Teddy, careful not to wake baby Marc, who was asleep on his shoulder. Victoire sighed, looking up at the angel she had placed ever so beautifully on the tree.

"I think this one is going to be even more fabulous," she sighed blissfully.

"Marc won't even remember it," pointed out Teddy, stroking the now-emerald hair of his two-month son.

"Do you remember this, Teddy?" asked Victoire. Teddy looked up again to see his wife perched halfway down the ladder, fingering a crystal ornament that she had placed on the tree the night before. "Mum gave this to me when Renee was born. Because-."

"Because it was ten days before Christmas, and they were on sale in the gift shop," finished Teddy with a smile. Victoire laughed simply, taking another step down the ladder.

"And this one!" she cried, laughing loudly. "Lily and Al made this when they were eight and nine, do you remember? They thought it would brighten up your apartment."

"And eleven-year-old Jamie broke it the next day," added Teddy, remembering the tears in his youngest cousin's eyes as she found her brand new present to them shattered. "Ginny wanted to lock him in his room, but Harry found it more fitting to hand them pillows and let them chase James around the house until he begged for mercy." Victoire shook her head, moving another rung down the ladder.

"Look, Teddy," she sighed. "This was Aunt Gabrielle's, which she got rid of after Laurent insisted on destroying the tree."

"I don't remember that," muttered Teddy.

"Well, it went to my Mum, of course, and she decided to give it to us. You know how she is on her Christmas decorations." Teddy shivered.

"You know," he commented, indicating past the room filled with boxes and out the door. "I doubt our house would be surrounded with candycanes and reindeer had she not taken Renee shopping."

"Because you can't say no to your daughter?" asked Victoire dryly.

"She's five!" protested Teddy. "Have you seen that face?" For a moment, they stared at each other, and then they both started laughing. Soon, little Marc was lying on the floor, wide awake, bawling, watching his parents smack each other with nearby pillows. Teddy hopped over him to swat at his wife, who retaliated by shoving him, hard, right into the-

CRASH! Down came the tree, shattering a great deal of ornaments as well as the angel on top. Victoire gasped, and Teddy looked up from the pile of evergreen needles and glass he was caught in, shaking bits of crystal out of his dark red – turning orange – hair. Making shh-ing noises, Victoire scooped up Marc and was now bobbling him up and down.

"Why did we put him down?" she cried. "Renee!"

"Coming, Mum!" From down the stairs bobbed the little strawberry-blonde. She came skidding to a stop as she saw the tree. "Daddy! What did you do?"

"I didn't do anything!" protested Teddy indignantly, but Renee was already rushing over to her mother, taking little Marc from her.

"Can you take him upstairs with you, Renee?" pleaded Victoire. "Grab his bouncy seat and he'll go right to sleep. Daddy and I need to clean up." Nodding obediently, Renee skipped away with her brother, who's hair was rapidly changing to pink. Teddy gaped at the scene, slowly pulling out his wand to clean up.

"Put it away, Teddy Remus Lupin," demanded Victoire. Teddy froze, hoping that she wouldn't do what he thought he would do. "Go get the broom."

"Aw, Victoire!" groaned Teddy. "You aren't seriously going to throw away all of these ornaments, are you?"

"_You_ broke them!"

"_You _pushed me into them!"

"Teddy!"

"Victoire!" Teddy saw his mistake then and there. He knew better. He knew not to make Victoire Angelique Weasley Lupin angry.

"Go. Get. The. Broom."

"What about all the memories?" It was a desperate, half-hopeful attempt, but it took Victoire a moment to think. Then she shrugged.

"We needed a new round anyways. And we can start now, with magic-free cleanup!" Teddy groaned. Why did he even put up with this? Oh, that's right. They were married, with two kids. Oh, and he loved her.

"Teddy! Hurry up!"

Most of the time.

* * *

**Elsi: So...what did ya think? Was it okay for an "I'm back, don't shoot me!" type thing?**

**Trek: Press the little button down there! Comment box, if you will...**

**Elsi: See you in a little bit. Elemental comes first, though...**


	16. Promise

Promise

Teddy wasn't very good at keeping promises; Lily knew this very well.

"Lils, I'll stay with you forever," Teddy promised, settling a hand on her knee. "This is my kid, too. I'm not going to walk out on you." Lily sighed.

"I don't believe you," she muttered, resting a hand automatically on her bulging belly.

"Why not?" asked Teddy, his eyes growing to three times their normal size.

"When have you _ever_ kept a promise?"

"When have I ever _broken_ a promise?" countered Teddy. Lily shook her head, and she quickly began to speak.

Age 9

"Teddy!" cried Lily. "Teddy, James said he saw you and Vicky snogging!" She looked up at her friend with teary eyes. "What does snogging mean?"

"It's a very delicate art," replied Teddy with a wink. "It's what makes all the girls fall for me, and makes all the boys fall for Vic and Dom."

"Will you teach me?" demanded Lily, wiping the tears from her eyes. Teddy laughed.

"Of course, Lily. I'll teach you all about it."

"And you never did!"

"I never…that's crazy!"

"What are you talking about?"

"You're saying that I never taught you this?" The rest of their argument never happened.

"Alright," admitted Lily at last. "But that's only one occurrence…"

Age 11

"Can you believe it, Lils?" asked Teddy, Lily laughed as he scooped her up and held her in his arms. "You're off to Hogwarts!"

"I'm so excited!" squealed Lily. She remembered every one of Teddy's stories from Hogwarts. In her joy, she flung her arms around Teddy's neck; Teddy laughed and swung her to the ground.

"Go on, you don't want to miss your train," he urged. Lily nodded eagerly, her eyes shining.

"Promise you'll write me?" she prompted. Teddy laughed.

"I promise," he responded.

"Did you? No."

"Dear….Lily…Luna…Potter…I love you. I will do anything for you. I will never, ever leave you, and I promise this won't be like before. Love, Teddy. There. I wrote you."

"You're crazy."

"Do continue. You haven't convinced me yet."

Age 14

"Stop trying to control my life!" Lily roared, storming into the kitchen. Lysander followed her, his eyes flaming.

"I'm telling you, Lily, O'Connor is cheating on you!" Lily whipped around and slapped him, so hard that she heard the sound resonating every which way.

"Get out," she spat. Lysander blinked at her for a long time before crossing the room, grabbing Lorcan, and side-along appearated away. Lily collapsed on the couch.

"Hey, hey, hey…" Looking up, Lily spotted Teddy gliding towards her, his eyebrows narrowed in concern. "What's the matter, Lily Blossom?"

"Ly's being an idiot."

"He's your best friend, Lily, isn't he?" Lily shrugged. "Then he should be there for you."

"He thinks Jonathan is cheating on me!" blurted Lily. She burst into tears, and fell back into Teddy's arms, which instinctively closed around her.

"It's okay, Lils," murmured Teddy into her ear. Lily took a deep breath.

"Whenever I come calling, Teddy, you have to do this, okay?" she demanded. Teddy chuckled.

"Always have, always will," he vowed. Lily sniffed.

"Thanks."

"Prove to me that you kept that promise!"

"When in the world did you come calling?"

"It was written all over my face."

"Lily. I'm a _man_, as you've mentioned several times. What do you expect?"

Age 18

"Lily, you'll never believe what I did." Lily looked up to see Teddy burst in the room. His eyes were wide with shock; his neon yellow hair stood up in every direction. She turned around, smoothing her hair down.

"What, Teddy?" she asked.

"I…I was drunk last night." Lily groaned.

"You didn't…" she started. Teddy held up his hands to stop her.

"Wait, wait. I…I married Victoire."

"WHAT?"

"That's not bad, is it?" Teddy took her hands in his own, staring into her eyes. "That's not bad." Lily stared at him, studying every angle of his face – knowing that he could change it at any moment. She forced a smile onto her face.

"No, Teddy, it's not." She gently hugged him, wondering if he could hear her heart breaking. She gazed at him. "So now you're married." Teddy shivered.

"Yeah, I guess," he replied. "I don't know if it counts, though."

"You'll be there when I get married, right?"

"Right."

"Promise?"

"Promise." Lily sighed, watching his excitement. How could she ever get married, except to him?"

"Lils…you aren't married."

"No, and I didn't think I would then."

"Want to change that?"

"Wh-what?"

"I mean, will you marry me, Lily?" Lily blinked at him in surprise. Very slowly, Teddy slid off the couch and to the floor, dropping to one knee and taking her hands in his. "Lily Luna Potter, mother of my unborn child, light of my universe, angel of my life, there is nothing more in this world I want than to promise you that I will always be there for you. So, and I ask this of you now, will you become my wife?" Teddy's hair was lavender – Lily's favorite color. With one hand, he reached into his pocket and extended a tiny box of blue velvet. When he propped it open, Lily gasped to see the glistening diamond on the gold ring.

Lily's eyes began to tear up, and the only thing she could do was nod, sliding down to the ground to meet his eyes.

"Yes," she whispered. "Yes, Teddy Remus Lupin." Smiling, Teddy gently pressed the ring onto her finger, and Lily sighed happily as it slid perfectly into place.

"I promised you I'd always love you," said Teddy, his eyes wide.

"When?" asked Lily, confused.

Age 31

Teddy plopped his head onto his pillow, watching Lily snuggle down next to him. He panted in exhaustion, watching her. The lustful look in her eyes had died away; now she just looked wiped out. Before he knew it, she had collapsed into a deep slumber in his arms. Teddy bent down to kiss her messed up dark red hair.

"I love you, Lily," he whispered. "I will always love you."


	17. Quidditch

**Elsi: Here's a simple note. This is somewhat revamped. It makes more sense and is certainly less sketchy now...mainly, it makes more sense and doesn't violate my morals anymore. **

**Trek: Right. Morals. **

**Elsi: **glare****

* * *

Quidditch

Lorcan quietly settled himself in the stands all alone. He tilted his head up to the sky and ignored the screaming of all the shallow, annoying girls. Rolling his eyes, he sighed. Why was he even here?

As fourteen blurs of red and blue began racing around the pitch in front of him, Lorcan groaned. Oh yeah. That was why.

His Gryffindor twin, Lysander, caught his eye and flashed him a thumbs up. Lorcan knew the meaning behind the simple sign: you came! Giving his brother a fake smile, Lorcan watched Lysander turn away and face one of the opposing Chasers.

The first thing Lorcan saw of the match was Lysander catching the Quaffle and streaking off towards the pitch. He chucked it over to Louis Weasley, who ducked under a bludger, dived to avoid a Ravenclaw chaser, and threw it back to Lysander, who streaked up in the air and shoved the Quaffle past the Keeper's outstretched hands.

Half of the crowd erupted in cheers; the crowd behind him groaned. Lorcan made no sound, but a small smile flitted at his lips.

"He's _so_ attractive," giggled a group of Ravenclaw girls behind him. Lorcan stole a glance back at them, raising and eyebrow. Shallow, vain idiots in Ravenclaw? There were four of them, and each one was beautiful. The girl on the right had long red hair that framed a perfectly clear face. Next to her sat a curly-haired blonde with full lips and – Lorcan hated himself for noticing it – a full chest. On her other side was a tan-skinned brunette with dashing dark eyes. And finally was a dirty-blonde with pale blue eyes and a model's body. The brunette caught his eye.

"Hello, there," she purred. "Do you know Scamander?" Lorcan nodded dumbly, not really knowing what else to do. "You're his brother, aren't you?" Again, Lorcan nodded. At once, the redhead dropped down beside him, clinging to his arm.

"It's evident," she said, blinking her green eyes at him. "You're just as sexy as he is." Lorcan stiffened, uncomfortable. The dirty-blonde dropped to his other side, stroking his face lightly. Trying to edge away, Lorcan shifted towards the redhead, but the two girls sandwiched him.

"You couldn't introduce us, could you, handsome?" asked the brunette. "I'm Lila. That's Emily -." The dirty blonde only clung to him tighter. "And Celia-." The redhead gave a seductive growl, which made Lorcan slink lower into his seat. "And Olivia." The full-chested blonde had dropped below him; she had now placed her elbows on his knees. Lila placed her long-nailed hands on Lorcan's shoulders, leaning down to fully complete the box around him. "What do you say, darling?"

"I'm here to watch my brother play," remarked Lorcan, his voice very dry and nervous.

"You don't seem too happy to be here," replied Celia, pushing her lower lip into a pout. "Maybe we could help with-?"

"Shut it, Celia!" barked Lila. She lowered her face to stare at Lorcan. "Maybe we could help you with that."

"I-I-no," answered Lorcan. He tried to shake Celia and Emily off of him, but they wouldn't budge. "Please. I'm here for the Quidditch. Go away."

"Quidditch, huh?" smirked Lila. "Olivia's an expert at Quidditch." As if proving something, Olivia suddenly perched herself in Lorcan's lap, wrapping her arms around his neck and blinking her brown eyes at him. Celia and Emily scattered to various places: Celia at his feet and Emily at his head.

"What?!" cried Lorcan. "I don't understand, I-." He was cut off as the four girls pulled him off the stands. When Lorcan tried to struggle, Emily muttered a curse that bound his body in a tight cord. He was led off the Quiddich pitch and towards the darkness of the forest. Lorcan closed his eyes tight, letting himself be dragged. He could make a run for it when they untied him.

The bonds fell away, and Lorcan raised his fists, only to lower them in the face of the wand pointed at his face. Lila smiled sneakily, her teeth glowing white.

"Imperio."

_Fifteen Minutes Later_

"HEY!" screeched a voice. In an instant, all four girls scattered, vanishing into the woods. Lorcan didn't even look at his savior. It was a girl – she would hurt him even more.

"Lorcan?" mumbled the voice. Lorcan pushed himself away from her, but the girl just draped his robes back over him. "Is that you?" The tears came freely, soaking into the grass below him as he cried. "It's okay." For the first time, Lorcan recognized the voice. He gently opened his eyes to see Molly Weasley, her red hair framing her worried face. Molly carefully stroked his hair, a strange, knowing look in her eyes. "You don't have to be afraid. I know what they did."

"I didn't want to," he sobbed miserably. He knew very well that Molly was a fifth year, a full year younger than him. And yet she was seeing him like this? How could he explain himself? "They forced me! I tried to struggle, but it was no use! I couldn't do anything! It was the curse…"

"Calm down," sighed Molly. "It's okay. It's okay. You couldn't have done anything." Her voice hardened. "I've heard about those girls. They call themselves the Vipers – and vipers they are. They go around and seduce people, just for the fun." She sat down next to him, draping her cloak around him as well. "They raped you, Lorcan."

Lorcan let out a loud wail at the truth of it all. He was sixteen, almost a fully-grown wizard. He shouldn't have been raped by four girls.

"Don't feel bad, Lorcan," said Molly quietly. "Just be glad I came around when I did. I was running late from the game and I heard them…it's vulgar." Lorcan scooted forward, tucking himself into her arms. Molly held him there in silence, patting his arms. After many minutes, the tears stopped falling.

"Do you want to get dressed?" asked Molly quickly. Feeling the heat rise to his face, Lorcan drew his robes around him and nodded quickly. Molly tucked her head in her hands. "Hurry, then. I won't look."

"You…you don't seemed phased," he said quietly when he had returned. Molly shrugged.

"I couldn't help if I was," she replied simply. "I think I'll be a Healer. Or maybe I'll be some sort of magical therapist." Lorcan laughed bitterly. He felt awful.

"How did they land in Ravenclaw?" he asked bitterly. "They should be in Slytherin."

"They are," responded Molly. "That's why you don't know them. They steal extra robes and disguise themselves for a while, just to find other guys that don't know about them."

"How do you know?" he inquired, narrowing his eyes. Molly shook her head, a look in her eyes. For a few seconds, they stared at each other, not wanting to speak. At last, Molly sighed.

"I had to do this to Hugo, too," she admitted. "He didn't want to go to Rose, because she'd kill the lot of them. So he came to me."

"Poor kid," sighed Lorcan, thinking of his fourteen-year old family friend. "He's not even old enough to imagine that happening to him." Molly gently put her arms around him; Lorcan realized that he was shaking as much as his voice was.

They sat in silence for a long time, Molly putting her arms around Lorcan, and Lorcan slightly leaning against her, trying to steady himself.

"Thanks, Molly," he said at last. "You're an amazing person, do you know that?" Molly laughed. Lorcan shifted to look at her. "I hate Slytherins. And I hate girls…no offense."

"None taken," said Molly. "Disgrace to our gender, that's what those Vipers are." She shook her head, her eyes glinting with malice. Lorcan bit his lip. "Come to the game with me. It won't be over yet." Lorcan stiffened. He knew where Lila and her cronies would be – looking for another victim. Molly stood up and offered her hand. "I'll protect you." Finally, Lorcan smiled and took her hand. Why not?


	18. Ribbons

**Elsi: Hey...sorry, I had this done like a week ago and never realized that I didn't upload it.**

**Trek: Imaginary friend takes some blame...**

**Elsi: Yeah, cuz he didn't remind me :(**

**Trek: Hey, at least it's nice and fluffy this time...**

**Elsi: Shut it.**

**Trek: Don't own. Just saying.**

* * *

Ribbons

She always wore ribbons in her hair. It was just a thing she did, and it was one of those obnoxious things he found so endearing. But it was probably the most special thing about her. It was the way he could pick her out in a crowd: look for red hair and ribbons.

Often, as Lorcan looked back, he could remember the color of the ribbons she wore during special events. During her Sorting, she wore blue ribbons – hoping to become a Ravenclaw, which she was. On their first official date, she wore silver ribbons. Every birthday, she wore red ribbons. On their anniversary, it was white.

Lucy never minded what the others said about the ribbons, either. She was so indifferent to whatever they said. To Lorcan she secretly confessed that their words did hurt her, but she loved the way ribbons felt in her hair that she paid them no attention. Lorcan was convinced they were jealous, because he thought they looked amazing on her.

They had been dating since sixth year – now twenty-four, Lorcan didn't know where the eight years had gone. Back at age sixteen, everyone had thought that "Ribbon-Weasley" and "Dorkan-Lorcan" wouldn't last a month. She was a beautiful, talented young witch surrounded by friends. He was the top-of-the-year geek that no one talked to. And to everyone's surprise, they hadn't.

Their relationship was more of a friendship than anything. Lucy built Lorcan to be a man, coaxing him into talking to her friends and opening up some. He gave her the stability in her life she needed. As different people as they were, they were perfect for each other. Lorcan's mother had always said so.

Lucy had been wearing brown ribbons when he'd proposed. They matched her eyes to the shade, making them pop more than any make-up could. Lorcan still remembered peeking into her room to find her gluing down the same brown ribbon on a scrapbook page along with a photo of them showing off Lucy's new engagement ring.

And these were the thoughts running through Lysander's head as he stood on that alter, looking out on the crowds of people, watching. Lily glided down the aisle alongside Louis, two of their best friends. Molly came with Jonathan, Lorcan's out-of-family best friend. And then came Lysander, winking at Lorcan with the charm only he possessed. Lysander touched his hand with a smile, then turned to stare as Elizabeth Morgan, Lucy's best friend since third year, glided down the aisle in the cerulean and gold dress Lucy and Lorcan had selected.

And then, a silence fell over everything. Brown eyes and blue eyes became locked on each other as Lorcan and Lucy's eyes met. Little Allison Potter, James' six-year-old daughter, skipped down the aisle ahead of her, but Lorcan's eyes didn't even register this. White silk floated around Lucy's figure, trimmed with white and gold lace and accents. Her orange-red hair was pulled up in a complex bun around her face, leaving only a few strands to curl around her perfect face. Golden and cerulean ribbons slipped around the hairdo, tying it together with the Lucy touch.

He had wondered about this moment for many years, thinking about what Lucy would look like on her wedding day. Lorcan had been to weddings before – he'd been _in_ Louis' – but he had always wished for his own. No matter how much Louis or James or any of the older cousins said, he had never actually believed their stories about how their respective wives had walked down that aisle in a beam of light. Like an angel. Little Lucy Weasley, his angel.

They had taken a Muggle approach to their wedding (Lucy's mother had talked them into it), but there was still a purely magical touch to everything. The vows were no exception. In silence, Lucy took the thin strip of cerulean ribbon from her hair, tying it securely around Lorcan's wrist. It was a symbol of who she was. The wizard-priest, if you could call him that, tapped it lightly, and the soft fabric melted into his skin. Lorcan smiled, taking from his pocket a tiny piece of paper, a line from his favorite book, the one that defined who he was. He, too, tucked that around Lucy's wrist, watching it sink into her skin at a touch of a wand. Everything that they ever wanted to say was right there. They had a piece of each other, forever.

The next spoken words were completely un-necessary, but they went through with them anyways. Beautiful rings and softly spoken words had no value compared to their performed ritual. As for the next prompt, well, Lorcan and Lucy had no problem with that one; Lucy leaned into his soft kiss before the words were even spoken.

No matter what they went through, Lorcan knew in that moment that they would be ready for it. Every day, Lorcan could reach down and touch his right wrist, where the soft blue band of magical ribbon would always stay. It was a sign of his Lucy Weasley Scamander. His angel. His wife. That ribbon that tied around him tied him to her. Forever.

* * *

**Elsi: Never had a wedding one-shot before...hm.**

**Trek: I like it...**

**Elsi: You like all of them.**

**Trek: True. So... :) reviews?**

**Elsi: XD reviews**


	19. Stairs

**Elsi: Well, this is embarrasingly short.**

**Trek: Hey, at least you wrote it. That was something you were having problems with.**

**Elsi: :P but yeah it was. I love you, reviewers!**

**Trek: Elsi, I have some bad news.**

**Elsi: What?**

**Trek: You don't own Harry Potter.**

**Elsi: ...**

* * *

Stairs

"Why do they have to move?" grumbled a very sore Lysander Scamander.

"Because they think this is as funny as I do," teased Lily Luna Potter, sliding down the railing of the staircase Lysander had just fallen down. As if to prove her point, the staircase shifted towards the other side of the platform. Lily laughed.

"Why are you so mean to me?" he whined as she pulled him to his feet.

"So we can make up," chirped Lily, draping her arms around his neck. Lysander raised his eyebrows hopefully, and his girlfriend gave a little grin and leaned forward.

"Race you to the fourth floor!" cried Lily suddenly, and she pulled away and began pelting down the stairs, taking two at a time. Letting out an indignant roar, Lysander raced after her, whipping around railings and keeping his eyes on her flying red hair. He could catch her before the next set of stairs.

With a yelp, Lysander tumbled forward, rolling past Lily and flopping down on the first solid surface that caught him.

"Somebody missed the trick stair," sing-songed Lily, kneeling beside him. Lysander turned his head to the side to look up at her, pleading silently with wide blue eyes. Lily gave him an innocent pouty face, leaning back against the wall. "Get up, Ly. I'm not going to help you this time." Lysander narrowed his eyes and lashed out at her, grabbing her by her ankles and pulling her towards him. He jumped to his feet, using his Beater-strength to whip her into the air and over his shoulder.

"Ly!" squealed Lily, banging persistently on his back as Lysander started down the next set of stairs. "Put me down!"

"Never!" answered Lysander, turning the corner. Alright, now he couldn't be fooled by the trick stair. It was the fourth one, so three, two-

"As his foot sank into nothingness, Lysander lurched forward, and Lily screamed as she fell forward when he did. Lysander yelled in shock as she tumbled down the remaining set of stairs and lay limp at the bottom of the grand staircase.

"LILY!" shouted Lysander. He tugged angrily at the trick stair, but it held his foot firm. Lysander looked back to Lily's unmoving form. "Help!"

"Scamander? What-?" Lysander whirled around to the nearest person, a Ravenclaw sixth year called Sterling.

"Help me!" begged Lysander. "I tripped and my girlfriend, Lily…" He trailed off as he indicated to Lily. Sterling nodded quickly, easily helping Lysander out of the trap. Shouting a quick word of thanks, Lysander pelted down the remaining ten or fifteen stairs and fell to his knees when he reached Lily.

"Lils?" he whispered, lifting her head. Lily's eyes were closed, and her breaths came in shallow intervals. "Oh, Lily, I'm so sorry! Please be okay!"

"Do we need to get her to the hospital wing?" cried Jason Sterling, appearing again behind them. Lysander lifted his head back to look at the Ravenclaw prefect.

Suddenly, a heavy impact pushed him to the ground, sending the prefect stumbling backwards. Lysander looked up into Lily's intense green eyes.

"I told you to put me down," she growled, pulling on a face of anger. Relief pounded through Lysander and he pulled her close to him, breathing in that sweet scent of her flowery shampoo. Lily laughed in his ear, rolling off of him and sitting up. Sterling had vanished – Lysander was very pleased with this, because it meant there was one less person watching him do what he did next: proceed to snog Lily Luna Potter until he ran out of breath, and then beyond that.

* * *

**Elsi: Hey hey how was that? It was probably my worst: true or false? Heh, that's what I thought.**

**Trek: It's okay. You'll get your touch back.**

**Elsi: Why you...**

**Trek: Hey, readers, are you bored with waiting for updates? If so, check out Elsi's profile...just sayin.**

**Elsi: I'm putting up a link to my embarrassing first draft...probably. And be on the lookout for "Truth", the Lorcan/Roxanne one-shot I promised all the way back in Feathers!**


	20. Truth

**Elsi: I LOVE THIS PAIRING**

**Trek: Which we don't own.**

* * *

Truth

Roxanne, being a daughter of George Weasley, was naturally gifted with the ability to pull pranks and trick people without flinching and steal food or other important possessions without giving herself away. She and Fred both could do everything their father and their uncle could before them, but the major difference between them was simple. Fred, when caught playing a prank, would come up with extensively believable lies to get him out of trouble. Roxanne, when caught playing a prank, would hang her head and accept her detention.

The truth, to Roxanne, was probably the most important thing in the world. Sure, she hated getting in trouble as much as the next prankster, but in her opinion, once you were caught you were caught. Pranks were a game to her, and a lifestyle to her brother. And in Roxanne's eyes, her brother was losing his dignity and his reputation as a good person. No matter how many points were docked from Gryffindor thanks to her, she was respected throughout the year as an honest, respectable person.

The first time she ever told a lie to get herself out of trouble was in third year.

_"I can't believe we did that," Lorcan whispered. They had taken refuge in a classroom off of the fourth floor to catch their breath after running as hard as they could out of the kitchens. He pulled out his wand and carefully murmured the spell under his breath that would clean them off. Roxanne watched his concentration, feeling the sticky egg yolk drain out of her dark red-tinted hair and off of her robes. _

_"Well, we did," answered Roxanne brightly, smirking as he shook his pale hair out to get rid of any excess egg. "Come on, before someone takes notice." She hopped off of the desk she was sitting on and brushed out of the room, peeking outside before stepping into the corridor. Lorcan followed her, tucking his wand away. _

_"Do you always do things like this?" asked Lorcan. Roxanne shrugged._

_"Usually I get in trouble for them," she answered. "I only throw food at prefects that aren't likely to fight back."_

_"Surprised?" Lorcan said, a small smile tugging at the corners of his mouth._

_"Honestly?" Roxanne replied with a shrug. "Yes. I went off of what Lysander said."_

_"Well, do you always say true things about Fred?" Lorcan offered._

_"Of course," answered Roxanne, her eyes stretching wide. "When I call him a lying thief, I mean it!" She smiled at how ridiculous this sounded, but it was true. Lorcan glanced at her uncertainly, and she grinned all the wider. "He is!"_

_"Who is?" Roxanne felt herself shiver as the all-too-familiar voice met her ears. She spun around, looking up the staircase at Professor Longbottom, who's uncharacteristic frown made Lorcan flinch._

_"Hello, Professor," Roxanne said quickly, straightening. "Lorcan and I were just heading downstairs."_

_"I can see that," answered Professor Longbottom. He shook his head. "Do you know what kind of a mess you made?" Out of the corner of her eye, Roxanne noticed Lorcan staring blankly ahead. A twinge of pity flared up inside of her, and she stepped forward._

_"I'm sorry, Professor," she confessed, studying her feet – possibly for effect. "Lorcan was in the kitchen, minding his own business. I made the mess. The reason he went after me was because…" She straightened to look Professor Longbottom in the eye and flatly said, "because he didn't want to see me get away unpunished. He asked the house-elves to clean up for him, but I don't think they heard him. But he already docked thirty points from Gryffindor. It wasn't his fault, Professor, really. If anyone should be punished, it's me." Neville's gaze rested on her for a long moment._

_"You never lie," he said at last, making Roxanne's stomach knot up. "I see no further reason to dock points, since Lorcan has already done so." He shook his head, and Roxanne was hopeful that he would act a little more like he did over the summer. "There's no stopping you, Roxanne Weasley. Just like your father, you and your brother both." As Roxanne gazed at the ground, she felt Lorcan's hand on her shoulder. _

_Guilt clawed at her stomach as she glanced up at him. Lorcan's silver-grey eyes were sparked with concern._

_"You lied, Roxanne," he told her. Roxanne bit her lip and nodded urgently. "Why?"_

_"I didn't want you getting in trouble," she answered weakly, and she realized just how childish that sounded. "If you're seen making trouble with me, you might not get that spot as Head Boy next year." Lorcan tilted his head, smiling slightly. _

_"Thirty points from Gryffindor for lying," he said with a smirk. Roxanne's mouth fell open. "Thanks…"_

_"You can call me Roxy," she said quickly. "All my friends do."_

_"Thanks, Roxy," finished Lorcan. He straightened. "You know, I'm not one to be associated with trouble…I always thought it was child's play, the pranks that you play."_

_"Well, I'm still technically a child," Roxanne protested, heading down the staircase. _

_"That's true," answered Lorcan. "But Fred's not. I always resented him for it. Disturbing the natural balance of things and all."_

_"Disturbing the natural balance?" repeated Roxanne scornfully. Though he was three years her senior, Roxanne found herself enjoying Lorcan's company. In the moment, she didn't regret lying for him. In fact, if there was one person she didn't mind lying for, Lorcan would be it._

And so reflected Roxanne as she sat alone at the library table, fiddling absently with the corner of the essay she was supposed to be writing. She was supposed to be meeting Lorcan and Molly there, but Molly had ditched for some unknown reason ("I'm really sorry, Roxy, but…I…I'll see you later; you can go meet Lorcan,") with a wink and a smirk to match. Exams had come quickly that year, and all the teachers had assigned last minute essays, meaning Roxanne had practically no time to talk with her friends.

"Hi." Roxanne looked up as Lorcan calmly set his stuff down and seated himself across from her. "Is Molly not coming?"

"She bailed," answered Roxanne, putting away her quill. "Don't ask me why, because I have no idea."

"Ah." Lorcan hesitated. "You like people to tell you the truth, don't you?" Roxanne looked at him curiously before nodding. There was a funny look in his eyes. "Remember earlier this year, in the kitchens?"

"Just thinking about it, actually," she answered. "Great minds think alike, I guess." Lorcan chuckled.

"We've been hanging out a lot since then, and I've been thinking," Lorcan continued. He sighed. "Alright, I'll oblige to your wishes and tell you the truth. I think you're a great person. No matter how much trouble you're in, you tell the truth – unless it's for one of your friends." Roxanne couldn't help but wince slightly at his last statement, though her chest was warm from the compliment. "You're smart, and brave, and funny, and…I don't know, I kind of…I kind of like you." Studying his hands, which were folded neatly on the table, he took another deep breath. "I know I'm older than you, and I won't be at Hogwarts for much longer, and we're…we're completely different people – you're athletic and strong-willed, and playful while I'm studious and really narrow-minded, and kind of quiet – but that's not the point. The point is, even though all of that makes it hard, will you…will you go out with me?" At this final statement, Lorcan looked up at her, his grey eyes gleaming with hope and fear.

Roxanne slowly took his hands, meeting his eyes. She wasn't quite sure what to say, but at last, her thirteen-year-old mind made her take a deep breath and speak quietly.

"I think," she said at first, feeling the warmth of his touch comfort her and cause her heart to beat a little faster. "I think that I would be open to something like that." And then there was the joy, the relief, and the uncharacteristic excitement that Roxanne found herself so pulled towards. Yes, he was an overachiever that wasn't quite sure how to have fun; yes, he was a bit socially awkward and part of the background. But, frankly, he was a good person who she liked to talk to. Heck, they were practically dating anyways.

And plus…he generally told the truth.

* * *

**Elsi: I suck at confession scenes, but this wasn't my worst. And I really really really love this world...**

**Trek: Good thing the next one-shot "Umbrella" is the same world! We're in the last stretch people!**

**Elsi: Yes, I know! Only "Umbrella" left in the Rose/Scorpius (with some Roxy/Lorcan and Molly/Lysander on the side) thing. And then only "Vows" left in the Dominique/Teddy and Teddy/Victoire saga! Oh nos!**


	21. Umbrella

**Elsi: Sup. So I kinda screwed up the end of this...I finished this like two weeks ago but couldn't find an ending that worked so I made one up like ten minutes ago (6:11 am). **

**Trek: Oh, and Elsi owns NOTHING. I don't think she even owns...neeeeeever mind.**

**Elsi: .**

* * *

Umbrella

Rose studied the ground, trusting her bushy orange hair to keep her at least partially dry. She could hear the screeching of the other girls as they ran for cover. Boys conjured up umbrellas to cover them – it was an excuse to flirt, and Rose couldn't help but snicker at how idiotic everyone was acting. It was only rain, after all.

In truth, Rose rather enjoyed the rain. It had a soothing rhythm to it, and it always promised new life and growth. She was practical in that sense, but she couldn't help but feel drearier when the clouds blocked out the sun. The sunshine added the sparkle to her life in that way, because it reflected off of people's hair and eyes, and so there was just this radiant glow around everyone.

"What's this? You'll be all wet by the time you get back to the castle!" Rose internally groaned as she noticed the umbrella that had been conjured over her head.

"Bugger off, Shlaffy." Adrian Shlaffy was one of Albus' less likable roommates, because he was pretty much the essence of a jerk. Adrian smirked.

"That's no way to thank a gentleman," pouted Adrian.

"Go away, Shlaffy," snapped Rose. "If I wanted an umbrella, I could conjure one for myself."

"I don't doubt you could," replied Adrian, following her as she stormed away. "But perhaps you were just waiting for a handsome young gentleman to cling to."

"Shlaffy, leave her alone. She said _no._ I know you're not used to the word…it means _go away._" For the first time – even though it really wasn't – Rose found herself grateful that Scorpius chose to appear.

"What's it to you, Malfoy?" snapped Adrian, narrowing his eyes. Scorpius gave Rose a quick look before drawing his wand slowly.

"Back of, Shlaffy," repeated Scorpius. Adrian rolled his eyes, but took a step back anyways.

"Have her, then," he replied. "She's just a bushy haired bookworm anyways." His nose in the air, Adrian stormed off, taking his umbrella with him. Rose stared back at the ground as the rain fell around her once more.

"You know," commented Scorpius lightly, shifting his feet around awkwardly, "you are going to be awfully cold." He indicated his umbrella, and Rose raised her eyebrows skeptically. Scorpius sighed, looking slightly dejected. "Fine, Rose, if you don't want me to bother, I won't." He started to trudge away, but Rose sighed, making Scorpius turn around. He quickly shoved the umbrella towards her, conjuring up another matching one.

"Decided to stop being a pervert?" snapped Rose. Scorpius looked away.

"Sorry," he answered her. "It was James and Louis…" Rose snorted. "You're still angry with me?"

"Exceedingly," hissed Rose. Her chest flared with fury, and she wasn't quite sure why. But Adrian Shlaffy's words kept echoing in her head: _bushy haired bookworm…_wasn't that what her mother was known for?

"You're not," Scorpius said quietly, and Rose could barely hear his words over the heavy rain.

"What?" she snapped. Scorpius looked up, and the sincere look in his grey eyes took her by surprise.

"You're not those things that Adrian called you," he replied to her. Rose looked away – had he read her mind? "In fact…I kind of like the hair. And you're wicked smart, Rose…"

"Not this again," groaned Rose, and she stamped her way through the next puddle in an attempt to get away from him. Her heart thudded, and she hissed internally, wishing it would stop. She didn't like Scorpius, in fact, she was pretty sick of him after all that time.

In her attempt to get away, Rose marched through a puddle and slipped. She screamed as she fell backwards, the umbrella flying out of her hands. _Oh, crap,_ she thought to herself as she fell, but then she was caught by a pair of strong arms, wrapping around her. Rose steadied herself against her savior's arms, looking down at the hard stone ground below her. It was only then when Rose looked up and her _oh, crap_ thought was repeated. Scorpius looked down at her innocently, with wide silver eyes.

"That would have been a really hard fall," whispered Scorpius, clutching her in his arms still. Rose nodded, looking back at the slick and menacing stone. It probably would have done some sort of serious damage…she shuddered, not realizing that she hadn't yet pulled away.

"Thank you," murmured Rose, turning back to him. Her heart beat all the louder, and she felt like stupefying herself for not pulling away…but it just felt so natural.

"Rose…" trailed Scorpius. "Rosie…" And without delay, he tilted her chin up and kissed her softly. Rose found herself relaxing further – if that was even possible – in Scorpius' grasp. This time, she didn't pull away for many moments. When she did, she tilted her head away and didn't move.

"I…I'm sorry, Rose," breathed Scorpius, and she was suddenly aware of how close he was to her. Rose bit her lip, bickering with herself in her head. At last she gave in to temptation. This time, it was Rose that grabbed his face between her hands and pressed her lips to his, seeking out that impossibly addictive taste on his lips. It was many moments before she finally pulled away. Scorpius looked quite dazed.

"Oh," he said softly. "Okay."

"Okay is a good word for it."

* * *

**Elsi: And so ends the Rose/Scorpius saga! Yay (yay, yay, yay). Check out this ECHO (echo, echo, echo)! Tahaha that was fun!**

**Trek: You're so weird.**

**Elsi: Don't need to tell me that! Next up is the last in my Teddy/Dominique saga! It'll have something to do with the wedding...**


	22. Vows

**Elsi: Haha! Yay! Another chapter. I would have had it out Tuesday, but I was watching Glee XD XD XD so I finished it this morning. It's thanks to that episode I got the idea for this...AHHHHHHH KLAINE! Unless you prefer Blurt...**

* * *

Vows

Teddy took one last look in the mirror, adjusting his robes.

"You ready, mate?" asked Kevin, tapping his shoulder. Teddy nodded slowly, letting his now golden hair fall to perfection. He sighed.

"Ready as I'll ever be," he replied. "Let's go."

Eric, his other best friend, stuck his head into the room.

"Come on, Ted! Your bride awaits." Teddy's stomach churned at the words _your bride._ He was really doing this, wasn't he? He was really going to marry Victoire.

Very slowly, he walked out of the room.

"I feel sick," he reported. Kevin patted him on the back.

"Not getting cold feet, are you?" teased Eric. Teddy walked in a daze out of the little house, looking blankly ahead at the tent where he was to be married.

"Teddy!" Teddy turned around and saw Louis jogging up towards him. The strawberry-blonde tossed his hair and gazed at him imploringly. "Have you seen Dominique? Vic said she quit on the wedding."

"She…she what?" gasped Teddy, his hair instinctively growing longer and blue. His best friend Dom wasn't going to even be at his wedding?

"Vic said she…bolted. She just marched in and said, 'I can't do this,' and disappearated. Do you have any idea-?"

"This is all my fault!" groaned Teddy, collapsing backwards. He ran his hands through his hair, sitting down. Eric and Kevin and Louis exchanged glances. Teddy looked up at them from between his hands. "Dom came to visit me before the wedding. I…got angry with her…and I guess…damn it I never should have yelled at her. I never should have said those things."

"What did you say?" demanded Kevin. Teddy turned his hair pale pink in reply. "Oh, Ted. You didn't."

"I had to, didn't I?" snapped Teddy, dropping his hands. "I'm marrying her sister!" Kevin groaned.

"After all this, you still want to marry Victoire?" he said incredulously. "Sure, you may be marrying her, but…" He shook his head. "Look, I heard what Dom said in there. You may love Vic…but Dom has a point. Victoire's pretty…self-centered. She rejected your proposal because there wasn't a diamond on her ring. That's pretty…materialistic."

"But, I…"

"So you think," Eric pointed out. "So you think."

"Don't be ridiculous," Teddy scoffed. "Vic and I have been together since I was…fifteen or something. Sure, we've fought. But we've stayed together. She loves me. And I love her." The two exchanged a glance; Kevin shrugged.

"Alright, mate. Doesn't look like we can stop you." Teddy nodded sternly and entered the wedding tent.

Somehow, when Victoire glided down the aisle in that floaty white dress, Teddy wasn't stunned by her beauty. She just looked like always, and though that was beautiful, it wasn't the spectacular sight he was waiting for. Her shimmery golden-red hair sparkled in its fountain-like updo; her strapless white dress hugged her body. Simply put, she was beautiful, radiant, and marvelous to look at. But that was just it: she looked radiant every day, beautiful when she tried, marvelous to look at when she was happy.

Then, Teddy considered something that he hadn't considered since he was an angsty teenager. What if he was all wrong about this? What if he had snubbed the people that were right? Since he was seventeen, people had been warning him about Victoire. They told him that the pair wouldn't last – well, he proved them wrong. They told him that she would be too hard on him – well, he proved them wrong. They told him that she would walk all over him – Teddy paused.

She could walk all over him. It was a plain truth; if she couldn't, she never would have been able to talk him into marrying her, or force him to buy her a fancy expensive ring, or really, anything.

While he stood there, frozen, the binding wizard was proceeding with the ceremony. Teddy was stiff, stiff with nerves. Victoire's ocean-colored eyes fixed on him as she smiled and promised her life to him. And then, the wizard turned to him.

"Teddy?" whispered Kevin. "Ted, say something."

"Teddy?" murmured Victoire, her eyes stretching wide with shock. But Teddy noticed something that he hadn't noticed before. The look in Victoire's eyes wasn't in shock that he may leave her. It was in shock that something could happen to her perfect wedding.

"No." He stared at her for a long moment as the whispers of shock began to spread through the audience. Victoire slowly processed this, but then her eyes narrowed in fury, and she pulled out her wand. But Teddy had already pulled out his, twisted on the spot, and was flying through space.

He arrived on a narrow street, lined with apartment complexes. Taking a deep breath, Teddy climbed the stairs of the building on the left side, knocking on the door of the third one on the left.

"Dom, it's Teddy," Teddy called out. He heard a small shuffling noise, betraying that Dominique was home. Sitting at the door, he waited…but Dominique never swung the door open. "Dominique Constance Weasley, if you don't open this door right now I will blast it through your living room."

"What do you want?" cried Dominique, swinging open the door. Teddy narrowed his eyes, staring down at her. He could tell by her face just how flaming red his hair was.

"You left," he said quietly. Dominique laughed bitterly, almost cruelly, her blue eyes saucers of hate.

"Of course I left," she hissed. "You told me to go, didn't you? Why would I ever want to be a part of your wedding?" Teddy paused for a long moment, telling himself to cool down.

"Because you want my happiness," he told her simply. "You claim to care for me as more than a friend – or maybe just a friend. But friends don't try and make friends lose people. They try and make them happy, and share in their happiness."

"My point stands," snapped Dominique, narrowing her eyes further. "She would _never_ try to make you happy. She'd make you miserable, always demanding you to get a better job, or find the time to make her dinner, or do everything for her. So why would I be happy condemning you to your doom?"

The question hung in the air for several moments, and Teddy observed Dominique with a lump in his throat. She was several inches shorter than Victoire, with short, straight blonde hair unlike Victoire's curly reddish-blonde hair of a longer length. She had less dainty features than Victoire, seeming less fairy princess and more stand-for-herself princess.

"My point exactly," continued Dominique when he gave no answer. She started to shut the door, but he shoved his way into the room before she could do so, stopping the door mid-swing.

"Then what else am I supposed to do?" he cried out. "I don't know what a relationship's about. I just went with Vic and did everything I heard. I didn't know, Dominique, and I still don't!"

"A relationship is all about moments," murmured Dominique immediately. "There's the first moment you love someone, and you realize, 'oh. So you're the one I've been looking for'. There's the moment when you know you love someone unconditionally, and you realize, 'wow. I love this person. I don't just like them anymore, I love them'. There's the moment…" Her voice trailed off in Teddy's mind, because something had happened to him.

Dominique talking about moments?

That was…well…a moment for him.


	23. Water

**Elsi: Hey, all! I'm back, with the fourth-to-last update in this story! GASP!**

**Trek: So, if you all remember L&L: Music, you'll remember that it had some inspiration from the song "Music Again" by Adam Lambert.**

**Elsi: Yeah, well...I like Adam Lambert. So, the last line is from "Soaked"...yeeeehaw. **

**DISCLAIMER: ME NO OWN. Cept I do own Lysander's song...XD **

* * *

Water

In the evening light, she played her song, letting it drift over the vast expanse of water in front of her. She stared down at the sheet of music held down by her transfiguration book, immitating the intricate melodies she had scrawled down onto the sheet. Music soothed her, it really did, and especially this song. She'd only heard the song once, but its notes played in her head on endless repeat.

Rasing the flute to her lips again, Dominique let out her next set of lines, her eyes fixed on the shadowy figure on another side of the lake. In the low lighting, she couldn't be sure it was him, but she had a feeling it was. Did he recognize the tune she played? He should…

A brief fear gripped Dominique. What if the melody was all wrong? What if he heard her song, and it was just another piece of music? What if she wasn't even playing the right song? What if she was, and he was mad at her for it?

At last, he stood up, and Dominique watched him. He scooped up his bag and turned for the castle; Dominique's heart began to sink. But then, a moment later, he turned around and began stomping towards her. Dominique stopped playing as he came closer, holding her flute inches below her bottom lip.

"Good evening, Scamander," Dominique said quietly, finally laying her flute in her lap. Lysander glared at her, dropping his bag and sitting on the ground.

"What do you want, Weasley?" he demanded.

"Why do you think I want anything?" Dominique inquired casually, glancing at him with what she hoped was a sarcastic smirk. Lysander stared back at her for a long moment, his steely grey eyes searching her turquoise ones. He had long blonde hair that hung in front of his face, shaggy almost, giving him an almost animal-like face.

"The music," he snapped. "I'd say you're trying to get me over here."

"Well, fine, then," answered Dominique, raising an eyebrow. She dug the sheet music out from under her book and thrust it towards him. "I want the song that you wrote for my sister."

"No." Lysander turned to go, but Dominique reached out and grabbed his arm, pulling him back down.

"Please, Lysander?" she asked quietly. Lysander stared down at her, his face grim. Dominique pulled her best pleading look on her face, stretching her eyes wide.

"Fine," huffed Lysander. Dominique beamed, and the Scamander twin paused. "You look like Victoire when you do that."

"I get that a lot," sighed Dominique, looking down at the flute in her hands. "It's why I picked up music. So I couldn't be like Victoire." Lysander sat down, crossing his legs and looking at her expectantly. Dominique took a deep breath and continued.

"Vic is a lot like my mother," I started slowly. "She's beautiful, yes, and can act a little bit like a…well, a pansy. But honestly, she can kick some ass if that's what's needed. But neither of them have a taste for anything…artistic, or musical. My dad is a little more open to that, a little more…down to earth. He bought me my flute when I asked for it, and snuck me into Muggle piano lessons. I used to play long pieces for my parents, concertos and what not. Mum said she loved it, but it was really my dad who was proud of me. And that's all I cared about.

"Victoire, on the other hand, wants her pretty little trinkets and her happy life," I went on, seeing the look in Lysander's face. "She's a pretty face; she's got some sort of brains; she's a powerful girl. But I don't think she's ever…cared about someone. Like I know…like I know you cared for her." Dominique quietly touched Lysander's hand, seeing the blank expression in his eyes.

"I did," he told her quietly. Dominique brought her hands back to her lap in embarrassment as Lysander turned towards the lake, sighing. "I really did. I thought she was something she wasn't. I thought she was…kind, caring, and determined to keep me. Her language was pretty good, I'll give her that. But I don't think it ever hit her, did it?" Dominique bit her lip. She had seen the flowing poetry Lysander had sent Victoire in letters; she had seen the beautiful hand-made gifts that Victoire had sighed and shoved on her shelf. From the moment Victoire had shown her Lysander's first letter – it was a joke to the eldest Weasley daughter – Dominique had admired Lysander. Though she pretended not to, she did.

"No," she answered quietly. "No, she didn't. I'm sorry, Lysander." She inched towards him slowly, watching his face as he stared over the water of the lake. His knees were curled to his chest, his arms hugged them tightly. "I'm sorry," Dominique repeated. Suddenly, without warning, Lysander's arms were around her. Dominique remembered the last time she had been this close to him; she had been crying over her breakup with her long-time boyfriend, Harry Finnegan. Ironically, it was because Harry had thought she liked somebody else – that somebody had turned out to be Lysander. And what had happened then? He had played her a song. The sweet music, designed for Victoire, had been given to her. It had made such an impact on her.

"Don't let me go, Dominique, okay?" whispered Lysander. Weakly, Dominique put her arms around him, closing her eyes as she curled into his chest. "I may not know you all that well, but I feel like I do."

"Of course I won't," Dominique murmured, opening her eyes to look up at him. "Don't worry, Lysander. I won't."

"Thanks," muttererd Lysander. His stormy eyes swam with gratitude and amazement, and Dominique could see the waves of the lake upon his face.

_Soaked to the bone, sink like a stone. I will take you home. It's not the first time, it's not the worst crime, our souls will be okay…_

* * *

**Elsi: I'm personally quite happy with this. **

**Trek: Good for you. Want to tell them what the next one's called?**

**Elsi: Sure. Well, it's X, and I didn't feel like doing Xylaphone...so the next one is X-Ray...I'll make it work.**

**Trek: **reads from notecard** If you review, you will get huggled...okay, Elsi, who wrote these?**

**Elsi: Don't ask me! **winks****


	24. XRay

**Elsi: Elsi here. Summer just started, so...that gives me more writing time. That is, if this summer isn't taken up by summer school, random parties/group events, and camp!**

**Trek: Can you believe, Elsi, that it's nearly been a year since you founded this account?**

**Elsi: Really? Wowzers. And I'm almost done with this...thing. Two more chapters to go, people!**

**Trek: WE DONT OWN THIS. **

* * *

X-Ray

Roxanne laughed, hoisting herself higher in the tree.

"Can't catch me!" she teased Fred. Fred grinned, taking another branch in stride and grabbing hold of his sister's ankle.

"Sure can!" he growled in a playful voice, tugging her lightly. Roxanne gave a soft squeal, holding onto the trunk of the tree. She pulled against Fred, but the red-head held on, climbing higher with a hold on her ankle. Roxanne shook him off forcefully, and Fred lost his hold on her and on the tree. He wobbled for a moment on the tree branch, reaching for the trunk, but before he could get a solid hold on it, he tumbled downwards.

"FRED!" screeched Roxanne, reaching down through the branches. She could hear her brother's cry as he fell, and Roxanne instantly climbed down from the tree.

Teddy, who had been watching them, was already at Fred's side by the time Roxanne hopped down from the tree. His hair was a horrible violet, and his face was lined with worry. Fred himself was crying quite loudly, holding his leg.

"What's wrong with him?" she squeaked, her hands rising to her face in terror. Teddy frowned.

"I'm not sure," he admitted. Roxanne gasped.

"Should I Floo Mum?" she asked, turning to go.

"No, wait!" cried Teddy. "They can't know…they'll get angry."

"What are we going to do then?" asked Roxanne. Teddy thought for a moment before nodding.

"Grandma Andy told me about a Muggle doctor's office," he said, scooping Fred up in his arms. "We'll take him there." Teddy started towards the car that sat in the driveway, which Roxanne's dad would let them use only in emergencies. Teddy lay a sobbing Fred in the backseat, and Roxanne slid in beside him.

"Teddy, do you know how to drive?" asked Roxanne as thirteen-year-old Teddy jumped into the front seat and started the ignition.

"Nope," Teddy answered. "But it shouldn't be too hard. I mean, Muggles do it. How hard could it be?"

It proved to be indeed very hard, as Roxanne found out. She closed her eyes and curled up against Fred for the large duration of the drive, wishing Teddy would slow down, and not crash them into anything. But he didn't, and soon, the car flipped off. Roxanne lifted her head from a semi-conscious Fred – he had slipped asleep half-way there – and let Teddy scoop him up in her arms. The sudden movement startled her brother awake, and Fred opened his chocolate eyes.

"Where are we?" he muttered.

"Hospital," grunted Teddy, beckoning for Roxanne to follow. Roxanne did as she was told, hopping behind the older boy with wide eyes. The Muggle hospital was large and all a very bright white color. She kept her eyes on Teddy's inconspicuous features to look like their legal-adult-babysitter and ignored practically everything else. At eight years old, Muggle things were too crazy for her.

Eventually, it came to the point where Roxanne and Teddy were sat outside of a small curtain, where they were using big machines on Fred. Roxanne clambered into Teddy's lap and peered up at him.

"What are they doing to Freddie?" she whimpered helplessly. Teddy gave her a small smile.

"They're using an x-ray," he replied. Roxanne frowned.

"What's an x-ray?"

"Want me to show you?" Teddy asked, flashing a wider grin. Roxanne nodded eagerly. Looking around to make sure no one was looking, Teddy slipped his wand out of his pocket and cast a quick disillusionment charm on them. Then he took her hand in his and waved his wand quickly.

Roxanne squeaked, for where her hand had been was now a black-and-neon picture of what looked to be the skeleton form of her hand.

"This is an x-ray," answered Teddy. "I suppose we could have done it at home, but I thought it was best if the experts do it. They're checking to make sure his bones aren't broken." Quickly, Teddy muttered a few counter-curses and looked up just in time as a doctor made his way over.

"It looks like a simple bone-fracture," the elderly doctor reported. Roxanne listened with interest as the doctor gave a quick diagnosis and treatment options. She watched, fascinated, as he wrapped Fred's leg in a cast and handed them a pair of crutches. Teddy thanked the kind doctor, paid with the emergency Muggle money he had brought along, and the three of them left the hospital.

"Am I going to be okay?" asked Fred as Teddy settled him into the car. Roxanne jumped around to the other side and slid next to him, nodding.

"You just need to rest and let the doctors check on your leg every few weeks," she recited. "That's what the doctor recommended, anyways."

"Aren't you a little Healer?" teased Teddy, smiling. "Come on. Let's get home and figure out what to tell your parents."

XXXXX

Healer Roxanne Alicia Lupin nee Weasley frowned as a tall, green-haired man hurried through the door to their two-story house, their ten year-old son in his arms.

"Raymond fell out of a tree," he explained. Roxanne sighed, shaking her head and hurrying to the couch, where her husband was settling down their son.

"This won't hurt, I promise," Roxanne said, and she cast the charm she had seen her now-husband perform many, many years ago. Raymond's leg turned into the x-ray projection, and Roxanne's eyes flitted over it quickly. She sighed in relief.

"He's fine," she reported quickly. "Nothing broken, nothing fractured." Teddy sighed in relief, dropping down into the armchair across the room.

"I was so afraid…" he trailed. "We got in so much trouble when Fred had a bone fracture, remember?"

"I remember," Roxanne said softly. She handed her whimpering son a potion, and watched as he drifted to sleep. "I remember."

She yelped in surprise as she was pulled backwards into her husband's lap. Teddy peered down at them, taking on the disguise he had used at the Muggle hospital so many years ago.

"Aren't you a little Healer?" he said with a smile. Roxanne smiled back at him and reached up to meet his incoming lips.

In his sleep, Raymond smiled.

**Elsi: I had so many possible plans for this, and NONE of them worked. At last I settled for this rushed little one-shot. How 'bout I go hurry up and write Lessons and Lies: Yellow, then? It's Molly/Lysander, so let's get to work! YEEHAW.**

**Trek: We would like to take a moment and tip our hats to the most amazing group of readers - and especially reviewers - ever. In the last chapter, we promise a special mention to those of you who have reviewed and favorited this story. Thank you so much!**

**Elsi: Oi, Trekkers. It ain't over yet! But it will be soon...then I can maybe - maybe - start on a new Harry Potter story? **

**Trek: You're quite excited about that one...**

**Elsi: I am! More to come! Stay tuned, folks! And review!**


	25. Yellow

**Elsi: GASP. What is this nonsense? Another update, completely written within twenty minutes of the last? What is this nonsense!**

**Trek: Sick writer's disease.**

**Elsi: **facepalm** RIGHT. SWD. I knew that...goshkers.**

**Trek: Right. We at Storm that Twists in Spiral Incorperated hold no rights to any of the following materials. We are simply fans, hoping to live up to the greatness of Rowling. Thank you.**

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Yellow

Lysander was a strange, strange person. As son of Luna Scamander nee Lovegood, it was expected of him. And he fit the bill, perfectly. Lysander was a Seer, and a gifted one at that. Usually, he Saw things in the waking world, but occasionally, he received coded messages in his dreams. Such as the dream he had received the night before.

"What are you thinking about, Ly?" asked Molly Weasley, his girlfriend, coming up behind him on the bench. Lysander shrugged his shoulders, staring into the fire.

"The color yellow," he reported blandly. Molly came to kneel on the bench behind him and started to massage his back.

"You like yellow," she observed. Lysander nodded. An idea struck his mind.

"Molly?" he questioned. Molly threw her arms around his neck and stopped her massage, resting her chin on his shoulder.

"Yes?" she replied. Lysander paused. Was she waiting for him to say something special? That was where he had to be cautious with Molly. She was very, _very_ high maintenance. But he was oh so lucky to have her.

"You don't happen to have yellow dress robes, do you?" Molly's surprise was evident as she sat up straight. "Long and flowing, with a few ruffles around the waist and a big white flower on the shoulder?"

"Yes, I do, actually," she replied, a little shaken. "How do you know that?" Lysander loosened her grip on him and turned around to face her. Her face was lit up a dark golden-yellow because of the light from the fire.

"I had a dream last night," he said quietly. "In it, I was standing in a ballroom, dressed in rich yellow. I have a pair of dress robes that are yellow; I wore them to the Christmas ball at the Potters last year."

"I remember," muttered Molly. "Go on." Lysander nodded firmly.

"So. I was in this ballroom, dressed in purple. And I was starting to wonder why I was there, but then you came in. And you were dressed all in yellow, those flowing dress robes I described a little while ago. The lights followed you, and I wondered to myself if I was really the person you were looking at. But I was, and you came straight to me. Your hair was tied half-up, half-down, and you looked beautiful." Lysander closed his eyes, imaging the dream in vivid detail.

"All the lights were yellow, too, and the floor, and the walls, and practically everything else. But for some reason, your yellow robes were brighter than all the other yellow in the room. I could tell that you weren't wearing makeup, yet you were more beautiful than I'd ever seen you.

"And then, suddenly, there were other people there in yellow, too. Roxanne and Lorcan, Rose and Scorpius, and Scorpius looked truly awful in yellow, I must say. I thought to myself that the other women in the room looked nice in their yellow, but they all seemed a background display to you. And then we danced. We danced until the sky was starting to turn light, that pretty blue streaked with yellow as the sun rose. And the sun's light fell right on you, but you were brighter than it. Brighter than the sun, I mean. I tried to tell you that, and all you did was laugh. Your laugh was yellow, too, somehow. I don't know how, but it was all yellow."

He paused, opening his eyes and blinking as his eyes adjusted to the light. Molly's dark red hair seemed to be blonde with firelight; her brown eyes sparkled with the yellow light of the fire. Lysander noticed that he had grasped her hands and turned away from her, staring into the fire. He could hear Molly moving around behind him, but his mind spun as he thought about the fact that he had just told her about his entire dream, every last detail.

"Why yellow?" she asked him quietly. Lysander shrugged.

"I don't know," he answered. "I never really know what my dreams mean." He paused and then turned around, peering up at her. Molly had moved off the bench and was now standing over him with a look of doubt on her face. "But you were really very beautiful in those yellow robes."

"I actually never liked them," murmured Molly, brushing her hair into a ponytail with uncertainty. "I was going to give them to Lucy…"

"Don't," insisted Lysander. "Wear them to the War Memorial party next week."

"Hair half-up, half-down?" inquired Molly with a smile. "No makeup?"

"You never need to wear makeup with me," murmured Lysander. "I think you look prettier without it." Molly smiled wider and crossed to stand in front of him again. She held her hands out to him, and he took them, standing in front of her slowly. He was only a few inches taller than him, but it was still enough that she was looking up at him.

"Thank you, Lysander," she murmured very quietly. "It really means a lot."

"My pleasure, Molly," whispered Lysander with a smile. "Promise to wear the yellow robes?"

"I will," giggled Molly. "Lysander…I think I know why you dreamed of the yellow ones." Lysander tilted his head to the side.

"What?" he inquired. Molly grinned again, and her whole face lit up with an undeniably yellow glow.

"Yellow is the color of joy," she told him quickly. "Like the joy between us." Lysander smiled back at her. "Goodnight, Ly."

"Goodnight, Mols," responded Lysander. Molly kissed him on the cheek swiftly. "I love you."

"I love you, too, Lysander," chuckled Molly, starting towards her dorm. "My joy."

"My joy," echoed Lysander, watching her go. He smiled. "I like the sound of that. It sounds…yellow."

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**Elsi: Fluff, fluff, fluff, oh how I love fluff! My darling flufffffff!**

**Trek: Yes, yes. Fluff is good.**

**Elsi: It is. It is! So, readers, do YOU like fluff? I do.**

**Trek: Elsi is trying a weird tactic on convincing you to review. She's off to write the FINAL chapter of Lessons and Lies, which I'm NOT going to tell you the name of. It has the possibility of premiering tonight. Gasps. We will pay tribute to anyone who has reviewed or favorited the story by the time we write AN's. So, if you want to see your name on the thank you list of this story, you know what to do! **


	26. Zucchini

**Elsi: This is it, everyone. The final one-shot in Lessons and Lies. OH MY GOODNESS GRACIOUS.**

**Trek: Let's take a moment to thank the following people I should read off of a long list...**

**Those who reviewed: ****KaitlynEmmaRose, UndesirableNo.5, The Maestro of Jazz, YourEyesLikeStars, Jokegirl, NatalieWeasley, Gryffindor777, HeatherTheCat**

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**The staff of the C2 "When All Was Well": RedCloakedMaiden, Lady Astrea Black, PrimroseAmelia**

**Elsi: And a VERY special shout-out to KaitlynEmmaRose, who gave me ridiculously great reviews along the way. **star of applause****

**Trek: Well, let's get this show on the road, shall we? We DONT OWN THIS.**

**Elsi: Et voila, Zucchini. A Molly/Lorcan one-shot set in the world of Quidditch.**

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Zucchini

"So nice of you to visit Lorcan," Luna Scamander said dreamily. "Will you be staying for dinner?"

"I should probably get home," Molly Weasley answered bashfully, looking boldly into the grey eyes of her friend's mother. "Thank you, though."

"No, I insist," smiled Luna. "Rolf and Lysander are away traveling, so we have extra. We're having Freshwater Plimpie Soup with Zucchini casserole, it's a family recipe." Molly looked between Luna and Lorcan, who stood on the stairs.

"What about my parents?" she asked calmly. "I told them I'd be back by now."

"We'll fire-call them," Lorcan insisted, hopping down the bottom few stairs. His grey eyes shone at Molly with desperation. "Please stay." Molly paused, uncomfortable.

"I suppose it couldn't hurt," Molly murmured at last, giving in to the desperate look in Lorcan's eyes. "Will you fire-call my parents, please, Mrs. Scamander? I'd like to talk with Lorcan, if it's alright."

"I like Audrey," relented Luna. "I'll give them a call. Dinner should be ready in ten minutes." She bustled off into the next room, and Molly frowned at Lorcan.

"Thank you, Molly," he whispered. "I really need to tell Mum what happened last year." Molly shivered at the memory that overtook her: a sobbing, helpless Lorcan having just been raped by four of the most wicked girls at Hogwarts. "But I don't think I can do it alone. Will you help me?"

Molly stared at him for several minutes. She had come here in the first place to help him with the nightmares he had been having, nightmares of the Vipers. But this…telling Luna the story would no doubt lead her to admit Hugo's story as well, and Molly was afraid to do that.

"It's not really something to be discussed over dinner…" she began unsteadily. Lorcan shook his head quickly.

"As long as you finish your zucchini casserole, you'll be fine. The soup tends to get me sick anyways." As wonderful as Molly thought this was, she couldn't find any reason not to help Lorcan.

"Alright, fine," she sighed. Lorcan's eyes lit up with some sort of relief, and Molly felt a pang of horror register within her. What had the Vipers done to this once-confident boy? Since his experience, he had been skittish and terrified of every girl he saw. Poor Lorcan was a good kid, and he deserved better than this. What could she, Molly Weasley, do about it? Nothing.

"Lorcan…" she trailed quietly. Lorcan peered up at her, his expression one that she would usually see on a first-year, not a seventh-year. "Are you…scared of me at all?" Lorcan gulped, and Molly instantly knew that his answer would be yes. But then, he slowly shook his head.

"It's weird," he admitted. "You're the only girl I'm really not afraid of." Molly gulped back her tears of sorrow at this open confession that he was frightened of all girls in his life. "Except Mum, of course. That's why I want to tell her." Molly nodded in determination.

"Then we'll tell her." Lorcan's face was instantly plastered with relief.

"Thank you so much for this, Molly," he gushed. "It means so much to me. I…thank you." Molly smiled back at him and carefully took his hand.

"Let's go tell your Mum," she urged him. Lorcan squeezed her hand and followed her out into the main kitchen. Luna turned around and smiled.

"I thought the two of you would be out soon," she said dreamily. "Come get plates, Lorcan, will you? Molly, help yourself to the zucchini casserole." Lorcan, being seventeen, levitated the plates to the table. Molly went over to the table herself and took a generous scooping of zucchini. She loved the Scamander's zucchini casserole – they would usually bring it to Thanksgiving Dinner at the Burrow.

Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Lorcan mutter what looked to be an incantation. Now, Molly was a gifted girl, but she couldn't read lips, so she was clueless. It didn't actively look like anything had changed, but Molly was almost positive that Lorcan had used magic on something at the table. She settled herself down and waited for Lorcan and Luna to join them with the soup.

Molly found that Lorcan was right – the Freshwater Plimpie Soup was pretty disgusting. She was personally glad that she had refused the infusion of Gurdyroot Luna had offered her, because the smell of Lorcan's drink was purely nasty.

"Mum," Lorcan said at last, setting down his fork. "There's something I need to tell you." Luna glanced at him with wide and curious eyes. "Last year, at a Quidditch match of Lysander's…I…I…" He blanched at the words, and Luna seemed confused. Molly quietly slipped her hand under the table and found his sweaty palm, grasping it firmly. Lorcan met her eyes for a long moment and then turned back to Luna. "Last year, at a Quidditch match of Lysander's…I was raped."

Molly closed her eyes and took another bite of zucchini casserole to soothe the awful taste in her mouth.

_Molly,_ whispered Lorcan's voice. Molly looked up at Lorcan, but he was hesitantly explaining the story to Luna still, and was not even looking her way. _I've cast a spell on the zucchini, so that you may hear me once I say the activation words: I was raped. Thank you, Molly. Thank you so much. I wouldn't be here today without your help._ Molly smiled as she glanced at Lorcan out of the corner of her eye, but the recorded message of Lorcan wasn't finished.

_You're the only girl I trust, I'm sorry to say,_ continued Lorcan. _The only one that doesn't scare the living daylights out of me, as weird as that is. I don't think I could ever say this out loud, but it's something I need to ask of you. Please, please, Molly. Don't leave me alone to deal with this. Don't leave me._ Molly gasped quietly, and Lorcan squeezed her hand from under the table a tad nervously. Molly bit her lip, extremely pleased. With her other hand, she slipped the napkin off of Lorcan's lap and a quill out of the bag by her feet. Then she wrote two words on the napkin and handed it back to Lorcan.

_I won't._

* * *

**Elsi: Aw. I originally wanted to end this fic with "I love you" but Lorcan and Molly aren't REALLY in love...yet. **cackles maniacally** I really do love this world. I may mold it into a possible chaptered fic...perhaps.**

**Trek: Should you tell them about your other idea?**

**Elsi: Mmmm. I think I should. Behold, Ladies, Gentlemen, and Those Who are Less Than Sure...an excerpt from my next Harry Potter project: Shifting Sands and Falling Stars!**

* * *

"Savage, come look at this. I don't think you're going to like it." The voice was male, rough, and low.

"Orion," I whispered, my heart rate picking up. "Orion, they found us. How could they find us? We don't exist!"

"We exist, Audrey," muttered Orion as a man dropped in front of us. He looked at us through cold, beady little eyes, towering over us with his wand pointing in our faces. Slowly, Orion nudged me to my feet, and I realized how childish I was acting. I was seventeen years old, not a child.

"Who are you?" demanded the Auror, Savage, I believed. I closed my eyes tight, wishing this would all just go away.

Even though I was seventeen years old, I still didn't exist.

Orion took my hand, leading me forwards.

"My name is Orion Rookwood, and this is my sister, Audreyen Rookwood," he responded slowly. "We're the son and daughter of Augustus and Ophelia Rookwood. I'm twenty-four years old, and Audrey is seventeen. We both went to Durmstrang. I graduated three years ago, and Audrey is going into her seventh year." Savage's eyes widened dramatically when he heard who we were, but he said nothing.

"Orion Rookwood, eh?" he repeated, jabbing his wand in Orion's chest. "Show me your arm."

"That is my past," replied Orion coolly. Savage's wand pointed to his arm. Blank-faced, Orion extended his left arm and rolled up his expensive silver robes, where the infamous Dark Mark was…completely absent. Savage hissed, turning to me.

"And what about you, girl?" he snapped, er…savagely. My eyes went wide with fright, and Orion stepped in front of me, shielding me with his body.

"Audrey has done nothing wrong," Orion insisted. "She's completely innocent. She doesn't have a mark or anything, just like me." Savage raised an eyebrow, and Orion looked at me in distress.

"Show him your left arm," he told me. Nodding, I stepped closer to Savage, rolling the sleeves up on my navy robes. Savage instantly grabbed a hold of me, and I gasped, wrenching away from him.

"Audrey, it's alright," Orion said to comfort me, putting one hand on my back. "I apologize for my sister, sir. She isn't used to seeing people; our parents have kept our identity a secret for many years."

Wait a moment. Orion shouldn't have to apologize for me…right? Or was this part of this existence thing? Orion existed, and I did not. So I shouldn't talk. He should do the talking.

And he did, quite brilliantly. Orion answered a few questions of Savage's, and then the Auror directed the pair of us upstairs.

"Where are our parents?" I asked, and then I stepped back. I didn't exist. I should be quiet.

"Down at the Ministry," answered Savage gruffly. He eyed me curiously at my reluctance to speak. "Have you been told not to speak, girl?"

"Please, sir," Orion cut off as I stepped towards him instinctively. "Our parents wanted to keep our existence a secret. We were never supposed to exist.

"I see," sighed Savage. He turned back to his team. "Contact the Minster. He said he wanted to know the results of this one."

* * *

**Elsi: Weeeell? What do you think of my personal interpretation of Percy's wife Audrey? I'd love for you to tell me...PM me or review this in Lessons and Lies, either way works. And tell me what you think!**

**Trek: Elsi actually has chapters of this prepared...gasp.**

**Elsi: Hush, you. But yeah! I have like four chapters pre-made! It's about Audreyen Olivia Rookwood, obviously, and will eventually become a Audrey/Percy fic. Because there aren't enough Audrey/Percy fics out there! Haha. But seriously. Tell me what you think.**

**Trek: :D So long, Lessons and Lies! So long, faithful readers! **

**Elsi: I LOVE YOU!**


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